OTTAWA — Canadian soldiers stationed in Latvia are moving closer to the Russian and Belarusian borders this week as part of NATO's largest military exercise ever conducted in the Baltic country.For the first time, the entire Canadian-led multinational brigade is deploying east from its base in Adazi, Latvia, to establish defensive positions along NATO's eastern flank, CTV News reported Tuesday.The operation involves roughly 3,000 soldiers from 14 NATO countries, including approximately 2,000 Canadian Armed Forces members.Tanks, infantry units, medics and military engineers are taking part in the multi-day exercise, which follows a combat readiness evaluation at the brigade's base.Canadian Armed Forces Lt.-Col. Simon Mailloux, who commands the multinational battle group, told CTV News that Canada's military presence in Latvia has changed considerably since the mission began in 2017.“Back when we began leading NATO presence in Latvia in 2017, we were in a reassurance posture that evolved to a deterrence posture and now we're in a ready-to-defend posture,” Mailloux said..Canada has led NATO's multinational military presence in Latvia under Operation Reassurance since 2017, making it the country's largest overseas military deployment.The exercise comes amid continued tensions between NATO and Russia following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with European countries reporting drone incursions and other security threats near their borders.Mailloux said Canadian troops are also studying the war in Ukraine to ensure their military tactics remain current.“We're conducting the exercise to ensure the battle group is ready to fight,” he told CTV News.“We see what's happening in Ukraine, things are evolving. We want to be on the edge, we want to be ready if it comes to that.”Prime Minister Mark Carney announced an extension of Operation Reassurance during July's NATO summit in Ankara, Türkiye, reaffirming Canada's military commitment to Latvia.The deployment also comes as Russia conducts its own military readiness exercises across the border.On Monday, Latvian authorities briefly warned residents in two eastern regions of a possible airspace threat, prompting NATO fighter jets to respond. The warning was later lifted, and authorities said the object was believed to have landed in Latvia near the Russian border.There has been no reported connection between that incident and the Canadian-led military exercise.
