NATO Enhanced Forward Presence

Enhanced Forward Presence (EFP) is a NATO-allied forward-deployed defense and deterrence military force in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. This posture in Northern Europe through Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania and in Central Europe through Poland, Slovakia and Hungary and in Eastern Europe through Romania and Bulgaria, is in place to protect and reassure the security of NATO's Northern, Central and Eastern European member states on NATO's eastern flank.^[1][2]

Following Russia's invasion of Crimea, NATO's member states agreed at the 2016 Warsaw summit to forward deploy four multinational battalion battle groups to areas most likely to be attacked.^[3]

The numbers involved, although a notable supplement to the armed forces of the country being defended, are limited so that they avoid seeming to threaten Russia. The chief value of the force is that it is impossible to invade Poland or the Baltic States without battling the soldiers and firing on the flags of the involved NATO states, giving cause for war. It is believed that the prospect of war with all those countries will deter aggression.^{[citation needed]}

The original four multinational battalion battle groups are based in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, and led by the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, and the United States respectively.^[4]

Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and ongoing war in Ukraine, NATO members agreed to establish four more multinational battalion battle groups in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia led by Italy, Hungary, France, Czech Republic respectively at 2022 Madrid Summit.^[5]

Country	Location	Leading state	Participants as of November 2022[update][5]	Troops (approx.)[A][6][7]
Bulgaria	Kabile	Italy	Albania, Bulgaria, Greece, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Turkey, United States	1,650[8][A]
Estonia	Tapa	United Kingdom	Belgium, Denmark, France, Iceland, United States	2,200
Hungary	Tata	Hungary	Croatia, Italy, Montenegro, Turkey, United States	1,054[A]
Latvia	Ādaži	Canada	Albania, Czech Republic, Denmark, Iceland, Italy, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden,[9][10] United States	4,000
Lithuania	Rukla	Germany	Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Iceland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, United States	3,700
Poland	Orzysz	United States	Croatia, Romania, United Kingdom	11,600
Romania	Cincu	France	Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, United States	4,700
Slovakia	Lešť	Spain	Czech Republic, Germany, Netherlands, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, United States	1,100[A]

The troops serving in the multinational battalion battle groups rotate every six months and train and operate with their host nations' militaries.