Ukraine conflict: NATO leaders approve four new battlegroups in Eastern Europe

NATO leaders meeting during an extraordinary summit in Brussels on 24 March 2022 approved the establishment of new multinational battlegroups as a permanent alliance presence in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia. (NATO)

NATO leaders meeting during an extraordinary summit in Brussels on 24 March 2022 approved the establishment of four new multinational battlegroups in Eastern Europe. France will lead a battlegroup in Romania; the Czech Republic, one in Slovakia; and Bulgaria and Hungary have offered battlegroups on their own territory.

The Slovak parliament has approved the deployment of up to 2,100 soldiers on its territory. The Czech-led battlegroup will have troops from Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and the United States.

The Chamber of Deputies of the Czech parliament on 24 March approved the deployment of up to 650 members of the Army of the Czech Republic (ACR) to Slovakia until 30 June 2023. The Czech contingent will consist of at least 400, including combat and logistics support units, and military police. The ACR will initially deploy soldiers from the 43rd Airborne Regiment and 73rd Tank Battalion, plus electronic warfare specialists and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). According to Janes World Armies, the 73rd Tank Battalion is equipped with T-72M4CZ main battle tanks.

Meeting his Czech counterpart, Jana Černochová, in Bratislava on 18 March, Slovak Minister of Defence Jaroslav Naď said the first Czech soldiers would arrive in the coming weeks or even earlier.

Separate from the battlegroup, the ACR will deploy a 50-strong logistics unit to operate a refugee camp in Slovakia.