Marine detachment deploys its on-board mortar in NATO Eastern Flank exercise

• This is the first time that, in the framework of an international mission, the new Dual-EIMOS system has conducted live fire outside Spanish territory, as part of a combined fire support exercise

The 81mm Mortar Platoon and the Target Acquisition and Fire Support Control (TAFC) team of the Marine Corps Tactical Sub-Group deployed in Romania participated in a combined exercise with the other allied nations of the Multinational Battle Group (MN BG Romania) in a combined exercise with live fire support.

This was a milestone activity as it was the first time, in the framework of an international mission, that the new 'Dual-EIMOS' system, acquired by the Navy in 2021, fired outside Spanish territory. This innovative system, an 81 mm on-board mortar on a high mobility tactical vehicle (VAMTAC), provides the Mortar Platoon with exceptional mobility and versatility in operations, thanks to its 360º aiming capacity without the need for re-assignment.

During the exercise, the fire phase was composed of units from France, Belgium and Spain, which shared their knowledge and operational procedures. The coordination and fire control was coordinated by observers from the ACAF teams of each partner country.

This exercise demonstrates the high degree of coordination and interoperability among NATO Allied nations, which demonstrate their effective operation in a multinational context. This training activity is key to strengthening NATO's cohesion and readiness for common challenges through realistic and coordinated firefighting simulations.

The Marines' participation in this mission on NATO's eastern flank underscores Spain's commitment to collective security and the maintenance of stability in the region, consolidating its position as a reliable and highly capable ally.

Land deployment on eastern flank

Romania's Forward Land Forces Multinational Battle Group is one of eight counterparts deployed along the eastern flank of the Atlantic Alliance to contribute to the deterrence and defence of this area. The activities to be conducted are similar to those already carried out by the Spanish Armed Forces deployed in Latvia and Slovakia. These include carrying out exercises of the unit itself and others that are considered, integrated into the Multinational Brigade led with France, as well as those developed in cooperation with the Romanian Armed Forces.

At the 2016 Warsaw Summit, it was decided to reinforce ‘deterrence’ as a fundamental tool to guarantee the protection of allied territory on the Eastern flank. Subsequently, at the Madrid Summit in 2022, the Alliance recognised Collective Defence as the first priority among the missions envisaged in the new Strategic Concept of the Atlantic Alliance (NATO).

During the aforementioned Madrid summit, it was agreed to expand to eight Multinational Battle Groups (MN BG) deployed on the Eastern Flank, as well as their subsequent capacity to expand to the level of Multinational Brigade (MN BDE).

To date, the Spanish contribution of forces to these multinational units has materialised in the MN BGs of Latvia and Slovakia, to which now joins the contribution of a tactical subgroup to the MN BG of Romania.