France formally took over the lead of the NATO Air Policing mission in the Baltic states at a ceremony in Šiauliai on March 31, 2026, replacing the Spanish Air Force contingent after eight months of duty. The French detachment, operating four Rafale fighter aircraft under NATO’s Integrated Air and Missile Defence system, maintains Quick Reaction Alert to safeguard NATO airspace over the Baltic region. A Romanian Air Force contingent flying F-16s is also deployed to Šiauliai for the same rotation.

Lieutenant Colonel Alexandre, chief of the French detachment, said on taking over the mission that deploying to Lithuania was “both a responsibility and a privilege,” adding: “Different aircraft, different nations, but one mission: to ensure the security of the Alliance.”

The deployment is notable for the unit involved. The 4th Fighter Wing, based at BA 113 Saint-Dizier, is the primary wing of France’s Strategic Air Forces (Forces Aériennes Stratégiques, FAS) and the operator of the nuclear-capable Rafale B. Its assignment to the Baltic Air Policing rotation, rather than the single-seat Rafale C units that led previous French rotations at Šiauliai, brings a platform central to France’s airborne nuclear deterrent to NATO’s northeastern flank.

The symbolic move comes in the context of President Emmanuel Macron’s forward deterrence doctrine, announced in March 2026, which envisions a more dispersed and forward-deployed posture for French air power across Europe.