Jul 15 2022

Baltic Amber 2022: enhanced Forward Presence - a credible fighting force

Enhanced Forward Presence, commonly abbreviated as eFP, is an important element of NATO's strengthened deterrence and defence activities in the Baltic Sea region. Coming out of NATO's Readiness Action Plan, eFP was politically approved during the Warsaw Summit in July 2016 and activated later that year. This was followed by the deployment of the first rotations in spring of 2017.

After five years of presence, we can conclude that the forward-deployed multinational eFP Battlegroups in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland have settled into their mission—to contribute to Allied deterrence and, if necessary, defence on a persistent basis in close cooperation with their host nations' troops.

A Polish tank company assigned to NATO eFP Battlegroup Latvia fires rounds during exercise Iron Spear 2021, Ādaži, Latvia  / Photo by the Latvian Army

Based on the NATO strategic and operational-level guidelines for the implementation of eFP deterrence and defence, the tactical level has been entrusted with a complex set of tasks in order to make eFP credible. Looking at it from the Headquarters Multinational Corps Northeast's point of view, we can distinguish three pillars which are closely interconnected so that a change in one will likely influence the others and vice versa. They are: capabilities, plans and training processes. A robust set of capabilities and a clear employment plan supported by routine training and exercise activities are fundamental to ensuring that eFP remains credible and sound.

This combination sends an appropriate message to a potential adversary for which no translation is needed. At the same time, eFP provides reassurance to host nations that they will be collectively supported by their Allies in the event of a conflict.

Estonian soldiers from the Kalev Infantry Battalion, 1st Infantry Brigade perform tasks during exercise Spring Storm 2021 in Estonia / Photo by the Estonian Army