“We do everything to train, train and protect our personnel as best we can, but sometimes things don’t go as planned.”
Back in February 2025, The National Interest reported that Belgium was finally boosting its defense spending after lagging behind with a mere 1.1% of its GDP having been spent on its military in the calendar year 2023. (Only tiny Luxembourg, with a mere 1,000 personnel in its armed forces, had a lower military expenditure output.) That Belgian defense boost includes U.S.-made F-35 fighter jets built by Lockheed Martin and anti-submarine warfare frigates jointly built by Dutch defense firm Damen and French conglomerate Thales.
Meanwhile, the Belgian Army (officially the Belgian Land Component) is also doing its part to demonstrate the country’s newfound commitment to greater military contributions to NATO. The Belgian Army recently participated in a major military training operation in the United Kingdom by the name of Exercise Red Condor. Unfortunately, several Belgian troops suffered injuries in this exercise during a live-fire incident.
The Incident: What We Know So Far
The initial report came to us from Metro UK reporter Gergana Krasteva in a May 13, 2025, article titled “Three soldiers injured after shooting incident at UK military base.” The military base in question is the Kinloss Army Barracks in Scotland, located on the southern shore of the Moray Firth.
Specific details are rather sparse thus far, and an investigation into the exact circumstances is still pending. Fortunately, there were no fatalities reported.
In any event, Krasteva cites Belgian Defence Ministry reports that two of the troops were in a stable condition—with one expected to undergo surgery in Scotland before returning home to Belgium to finish convalescence—while the third soldier was taken to hospital with minor injuries and has since been discharged.
In addition, ten other land component soldiers suffered hearing damage.
The Red Condor Military Exercise
The wounded and injured Belgian soldiers belong to the Belgian Land Component’s 3rd Parachute Battalion (not to be confused with Britain’s famous 3 PARA, i.e., 3rd Battalion, Parachute Regiment), which in turn is part of the elite Special Operations Regiment. 600 of the battalion’s troops made the journey to Scotland for Red Condor, which is part of the battalion’s operational preparations to achieve their “Special Operations Land Task Group” certification. As Krasteva notes, “On Saturday, large convoys of Belgian Armed Forces vehicles were spotted entering Kinloss Barracks.”
Belgium’s Leadership Reacts
The Metro UK article quotes the following Belgian senior leaders on the unfortunate incident:
- -Belgian Prime MinisterBart De Wever: “I have received the sad news that three soldiers from the Third Parachute Battalion were injured during an exercise in Scotland. I wish the injured a speedy recovery. My thoughts are with their loved ones.”
- -Belgian Defence Minister Theo Francken: “We do everything to train, train and protect our personnel as best we can, but sometimes things don’t go as planned.”
About the Author: Christian D. Orr
Christian D. Orr was previously a Senior Defense Editor for National Security Journal (NSJ) and 19FortyFive. He is a former Air Force Security Forces officer, Federal law enforcement officer, and private military contractor (with assignments worked in Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kosovo, Japan, Germany, and the Pentagon). Chris holds a B.A. in International Relations from the University of Southern California (USC) and an M.A. in Intelligence Studies (concentration in Terrorism Studies) from American Military University (AMU). He has also been published in The Daily Torch, The Journal of Intelligence and Cyber Security, and Simple Flying. Last but not least, he is a Companion of the Order of the Naval Order of the United States (NOUS). If you’d like to pick his brain further, you can ofttimes find him at the Old Virginia Tobacco Company (OVTC) lounge in Manassas, Virginia, partaking of fine stogies and good quality human camaraderie.
Image: DVIDS.
