Royal Marines have carried out covert boarding operations in the eastern Baltic Sea as part of preparations for a new NATO role focused on rapid-response special operations, the Royal Navy stated.
The deployment, known as Exercise Baltic Dawn, marks the final stage of training for the UK’s Special Operations Maritime Task Group (SOMTG).
From next year, the unit will provide NATO with a maritime force capable of deploying at short notice to conduct missions such as recapturing vessels, securing offshore infrastructure, and carrying out covert coastal raids.
The task group brings together Royal Navy and Commando Force specialists, including pilots, engineers, and boat operators. Its validation for front-line duties with NATO’s Allied Reaction Force is scheduled for January 2026.
During Baltic Dawn, personnel from Plymouth-based 42 and 47 Commando launched small boats from support ship RFA Lyme Bay to conduct boarding drills before linking up with the British Army’s 3 Ranger Battalion for a joint raid on Saaremaa, an island off Estonia’s west coast.
“Exercise Baltic Dawn reaffirmed what Commando Forces have always stood for – the ability to strike unpredictably from the sea, anywhere, at any time,” said Major Adam Kidson, Officer Commanding SOMTG. “By operating from a Royal Fleet Auxiliary platform and conducting complex Maritime Interdiction Operations, we’ve expanded our reach and flexibility.”
He added that “the spirit of adaptability and relentless pursuit of excellence” shown by his troops ensured the task group was ready for NATO’s upcoming evaluation.
According to the Royal Navy, Baltic Dawn is part of Exercise Tarassis, a wider series of multinational military activities under the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) framework. Spread across Norway, Finland, Latvia, and the eastern Baltic, Tarassis involves thousands of troops, aircraft, and ships operating across northern Europe to test allied cooperation and readiness.
The Army’s Special Operations Brigade also took part. An unnamed Officer Commanding Special Operations Task Group B said in the statement that “Exercise Baltic Dawn provided an opportunity for a Special Operations Land Task Group to enable a Maritime Task Group infiltrating over the beach to successfully conduct a joint raid.”
The Royal Navy stated that the Baltic drills follow a separate Arctic deployment, during which Royal Marines trained with Norwegian forces to refine amphibious operations and logistics in cold-weather conditions. Both exercises form part of the UK’s contribution to strengthening NATO’s northern flank and testing new ways of integrating land and maritime special operations forces.
