MADRID (Reuters) – Spain will send 150 additional troops to Latvia as part of a wider NATO buildup in the Baltic region following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Spanish Defence Ministry said on Tuesday.
Spain, which already has 350 troops in the alliance’s enhanced forward presence battlegroup in Latvia, is increasing the number in line with the NATO response plans “to preserve peace and security after the invasion.”
The size of NATO battlegroups in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, once ruled from Moscow but now part of the European Union, are set to almost double from 3,400 troops at the start of the year to more than 6,000 in the near future.
Spain will send a field artillery Unit, an engineering unit and logistical support personnel, the ministry said.
(Reporting by Emma Pinedo; Editing by Nathan Allen, Alexandra Hudson)
