WorldBritish troops will arrive in Estonia on Friday, part of a NATO move to reinforce its eastern flank in a bid to deter a militarily resurgent Russia, the military said. The 130 soldiers will head to the northern town of Tapa, to be joined by up to 50 French soldiers on Monday as well as the rest of the battalion in the coming weeks. By mid-April more than 800 British troops and nearly 300 French troops will be stationed in Estonia. “The battle group led by the United Kingdom is placed here at the request of Estonia and a shared decision of NATO allies in order to strengthen the alliance's defence capabilities,” said Simmo Saar, a spokesman for the Estonian defence force. Apart from the British-led battalion in Estonia, Canada will lead a multinational battalion in Latvia, Germany in Lithuania and the US in Poland.

Source: Sunday Times March 17, 2017 15:45 UTC