Servicemen from the United Kingdom, who are serving in Estonia within the framework of the presence of NATO, received mission medals at the ceremony held at the Ministry of Defence. Among others, a mission medal was presented to Colonel Giles Harris, Commander of the eFP Command in Estonia, who has been serving in Estonia since the arrival of the allied units in the spring of 2017.

‘The presence of our allies in Estonia has been one of the biggest efforts of our defence policy over the past decade, and Colonel Harris with his team have helped in the last two years to make this a tangible reality,’ said Kristjan Prikk, Permanent Under Secretary of the Ministry of Defence, according to whom the allied battle group serving at Tapa is well integrated with the units of our Defence Forces.

In addition to Colonel Harris, several of his staff members also received mission medals. Also participating in the ceremony were Theresa Bubbear, British Ambassador to Estonia, and Major General Martin Herem, Commander of the Defence Forces.

The NATO battle group, which is currently comprised of British and Belgian soldiers, began serving at Tapa at the beginning of April of 2017, and is a part of the 1st Infantry Brigade. In March, servicemen from the United Kingdom’s Yorkshire Regiment, who are currently serving in Estonia, will be replaced with the King’s Royal Hussars, whose arrival will also be accompanied by additional heavy equipment, including tanks.