The Defence Secretary visited UK Armed Forces personnel deployed to Estonia to thank them for their vital service at Christmas.
Some 10,000 sailors, marines, soldiers, and aviators will spend Christmas Day deployed overseas, sacrificing celebrations with their families and friends to keep the UK safe. The work of the UK Armed Forces continues over Christmas on 60 operations in 44 countries this, while hundreds more personnel are working to protect the UK’s skies, shores, and seas at home.
There are 900 British personnel deployed in Estonia, ready to defend NATO’s eastern flank and working alongside French and Estonian forces to deter aggression and uphold stability in eastern Europe. The visit to Estonia by the Defence Secretary also highlighted the UK’s unwavering dedication to NATO and commitment to defending the alliance.
Defence Secretary, John Healey MP, said:
“In a world in which global insecurities are rising, we depend more and more on those who are willing to serve. And those who are willing to serve are supported by the families that stand with them and behind them. This Christmas, I pay special tribute to those 10,000 military personnel who are deployed overseas, many of them not seeing family and loved ones at this important time.
“It was an honour to spend time with some of those troops in Estonia, to serve them Christmas lunch and thank them for their commitment and professionalism. This week they will sacrifice what most of us take for granted, that special time with our families, to ensure that our nation is safe.
“Our British deployment in Estonia demonstrates our unshakeable commitment to NATO and the security of Europe, keeping us secure at home and strong abroad. Our presence here is a powerful message to our allies and adversaries: the UK stands ready to defend its allies and uphold our shared values, all year round.”
The visit to Estonia provided an opportunity for the Defence Secretary to discuss Project ASGARD, which will help UK Armed Forces in the country utilise new and emerging tech to become more lethal and better able to defeat the enemy.
It will harness developing technologies including artificial intelligence (AI), drones, and advanced sensors to help more quickly discover and process information and strike enemies on the battlefield, with priority work continuing on the programme in 2025.
The UK’s relationship with Estonia is a cornerstone of NATO’s defence. British personnel stationed in Estonia form a vital part of the enhanced Forward Presence, ensuring a permanent presence along the alliance’s eastern flank.
The visit comes as the UK has recently signed a defence roadmap with Estonia. The agreement will see the UK’s 4th Brigade Combat Team held at high readiness from 2025, ready to deploy at short notice to Estonia in times of crisis. It will also include the first overseas deployment of the UK’s cutting-edge Challenger 3 tanks and Boxer armoured vehicles, reinforcing NATO’s defensive capabilities along its eastern border.
The British deployment at Tapa remains the UK’s largest permanent overseas deployment, and both countries are working together closer than ever, with the UK leading on the new DIAMOND initiative, which will improve NATO’s integrated air and missile defence by ensuring that the different air defence systems across the Alliance operate better and more jointly across Europe.
Paying tribute to Armed Forces personnel on duty at Christmas, the Chief of the Defence Staff, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin said:
“Thank you to all our Armed Forces personnel for your extraordinary hard work this year. From delivering the nuclear deterrent and policing NATO skies, to training Ukrainian recruits and protecting merchant shipping in the Red Sea, the Armed Forces have stepped up to deliver all that the nation asks of us.
“I am immensely grateful to those deployed away from home over the festive season and wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.”
In the UK, Royal Air Force aviators at RAF Boulmer and NATS Swanwick are ready to scramble Typhoon aircraft from RAF Coningsby and RAF Lossiemouth to monitor any hostile aircraft which approach UK airspace.
Behind the scenes and out of sight at the MOD’s digital HQ in Corsham, military cyber experts will remain vigilant this festive season, defending the UK against constant cyber threats every minute of every day. These dedicated professionals ensure the security of vital digital networks, guaranteeing that the systems that connect our people, places, and equipment run smoothly and securely.
Royal Navy ships will also continue their work protecting the UK’s seas and coastline. Somewhere, deep in the ocean, a Royal Navy nuclear attack submarine continues to provide the nation’s nuclear deterrent in a patrol that has continued 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, for 55 years.
And the Household Division of the British Army will continue to guard royal palaces in the nation’s capital throughout the Christmas period.
In an address to the soldiers deployed at Tapa Army Base in Estonia, the Defence Secretary said:
“I wanted to say, above all, thank you. Thank you on behalf of all those back home who will never have the chance to say this to you for themselves. Thank you for your commitment to keeping our country safe. This is a really important deployment for us. What you’re doing here really matters. It matters for the security of Europe, and it matters to us all back home in Britain.
“You are making good on Britain’s unshakable commitment to NATO and to a safe and peaceful Europe. And that’s why we have this Operation CABRIT, the biggest commitment of British troops in another country. Here on the front line, we must also be on the cutting edge of new technologies and new combat techniques we must learn from Ukraine.
“We ask a lot of you all in the Armed Forces, not least the separation from your families and your friends and your loved ones. And at Christmas, that sense of separation can be especially strong. So thank you for your service. Thank you for your willingness to sacrifice what almost all of the rest of us take for granted. It’s an honour to be with you.”
