Defence ministers of Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine sign brigade pact

The technical agreement supplements and elaborates on the agreement of establishing the LITPOLUKRBRIG the defence ministers of the three establishing countries endorsed in Warsaw last September.

“It has been signed,” Viktorija Cieminytė, spokeswoman for the Lithuanian Ministry of National Defence told BNS by phone from Lvov on Friday.

The technical agreement stipulates that within 6 months after the signature of the document the LITPOLUKRBRIG command will have reached its initial operational capability, while within 12 months it will be fully capable of commanding the unit. The capacity of the LITPOLUKRBRIG command will then need to be approved by international certification.

The brigade commander, his deputy and the chief of staff will be assigned by Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine for a period of three years on a rotating basis.

According to Lithuanian Minister of National Defence Juozas Olekas, eight Lithuanian army officers are set to leave for Lublin, where the brigade will be headquartered, on Monday.

“I cannot say when the first field training event will take place but it should take place shortly,” Olekas told BNS.

The brigade will be formed following the model of multinational crisis response capabilities – European Union Battle Groups (EU BGs). The LITPOLUKRBRIG is planned to be made up of an international staff, three battalions and special-purpose units. Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine will each assign an infantry battalion, the establishing nations will commit personnel for special-purpose units and the LITPOLUKRBRIG staff.

The agreement provides for the participation of the LITPOLUKRBRIG personnel in joint training and exercises and deployment of the brigade or its elements to international operations mandated by the United Nations Security Council, while decision regarding deployment of the LITPOLUKRBRIG to international operations will be made by general consent of all the establishing countries.

The LITPOLUKRBRIG HQ will be based in Lublin, Poland.

The LITPOLUKRBRIG battalions will be held on standby in their home countries, and deploy in composition of the LITPOLUKRBRIG in case a decision is made to activate the brigade or any of its elements.

The Lithuanian contribution to the LITPOLUKRBRIG will be formed from the personnel of the Grand Duchess Birutė Uhlan Battalion.