Soldiers of the 43rd Mechanized Brigade from Havelte today received a Commemorative Medal for their contribution to the mission in Lithuania. The Ministry of Defense wishes to express appreciation for their efforts during their deployment.
The award ceremony took place in the Jaarbeurs in Utrecht, where soldiers who served continuously for at least thirty days or more in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and Lithuania were awarded. It involved a total of almost 450 soldiers, some of whom are stationed in Havelte.
Deputy Commander of the Armed Forces Boudewijn Boots presented the medals. He also had a surprise in store for the support the home front provided during the broadcast. The partners of the soldiers were handed a pin in the shape of a carnation. There was a special children’s medal for the children in the family.
The Havelter Brigade soldiers in Lithuania took part in Forward Presence, a NATO mission to defend Eastern Europe against the Russian threat, which increased after the annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula in 2014.
In response to this, the military alliance NATO decided in July 2016 to station extra troops on Europe’s eastern border. The soldiers were stationed near the town of Rukla, in the interior of Lithuania.