§ Mr. BakerTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the purpose of the recent Tartan Strike exercise; which countries took part; how many(a) UK personnel and (b) US personnel were involved; who was the identified enemy; and if he will make a statement. [35603]
§ Dr. Reid[holding answer 23 March 1998]: The purpose of the recent Tartan Strike exercise was for the Armed Forces personnel involved to practise basic counter-insurgency skills. The participating countries were the United Kingdom and United States, with some 105 UK personnel (a number of whom acted as unidentified enemy) and some 55 US personnel involved.