German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius on Monday announced plans to station 4,000 troops permanently in NATO ally Lithuania to help secure the alliance’s eastern flank.
“Germany is ready to permanently station a strong brigade in Lithuania,” said Pistorius during a visit to the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius. He said that facilities to house the troops had to be built first.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius was in Vilnius on Monday for talks ahead of next month’s NATO summit in the Lithuanian capital. Image: Kay Nietfeld/dpa/picture Alliance
Germany already leads the NATO battle group in Lithuania, a reinforced battalion of around 1,000 soldiers.
Vilnius has repeatedly urged Berlin to send combat troops to the country that borders the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad. Germany pledged in June 2022 to have a full brigade ready to defend Lithuania in the event of an attack.
So far, however, Berlin has resisted stationing the majority of the brigade permanently in Lithuania, on the grounds that the troops could be deployed quickly from bases in Germany.
Currently only the command post of the brigade with about 20 German soldiers is in Rukla, Lithuania. The rest remains at various locations within Germany.
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Pistorius cites past German experiences on NATO’s eastern border
Pistorius justified the changed German attitude with the country’s own past: Until the end of the Cold War, it was the former Federal Republic of Germany that was located on NATO’s eastern border to the then Iron Curtain.
“We were the ones who could always rely on our NATO partners standing by our side in emergencies and fighting with us for our freedom and security in Germany,” said Pistorius.
Nowadays, according to Pistorius, it is Poland and the Baltic states that are being exposed as West Germany: “And we, as the Federal Republic of Germany, expressly acknowledge our responsibility and our obligation, as a NATO member state and as the largest economy in Europe, to stand up for deploy to protect the eastern flank,” he said.
NATO maneuvers in Lithuania ahead of the summit
Pistorius is in Lithuania to observe a joint NATO exercise entitled “Griffin Storm” between the German and Lithuanian armies. Germany has sent 1,000 soldiers and 300 tanks from the 41st Mechanized Infantry Brigade “Vorpommern” to Lithuania to take part in exercises aimed at defending NATO’s eastern flank.
This is the third time such exercises have been performed. The current maneuvers are scheduled to last until July 7th.
The Pabrade training ground is less than 200 kilometers (124 miles) from Kaliningrad. Pistorius will observe the maneuvers together with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and the ambassadors of the North Atlantic Council, NATO’s most important decision-making body. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda and Defense Minister Arvydas Anusauskas will also be present.
Pistorius and Anusauskas held a joint press conference. Image: Kay Nietfeld/dpa/picture Alliance
Less than a week after the exercises ended, the Lithuanian capital will also host the NATO leaders’ summit next month.
Earlier Monday, Nauseda said the aborted Wagner mutiny in Russia demonstrated the instability of the Kremlin regime, which could affect the region’s security.
“The founding of the Wagner Group in Belarus could become an additional factor,” he said.
ie, msh/nm (dpa, Portal)