Minister of National Defence Laurynas Kasčiūnas discussed short-term and long-term military assistance to Ukraine, EU defence capabilities and defence industry at the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Defence in Brussels, reports the Ministry of National Defence. “Russia has no intention of stopping the war, as illustrated by the massive increaseContinue Reading
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda says he supports the debate on sending troops to Ukraine to train local forces and urges the West to stop “drawing red lines”. “I welcomed the idea of sending missions to Ukrainian territory as an idea, and I still believe that we should discuss this idea.Continue Reading
After long resistance from Turkey and the end of Hungary’s stalling tactics, Sweden will become a member of NATO. Experts say this will make it easier to plan for security in the Baltic Sea, but could also leave the Baltic states on the border between the two commands. Sweden’s accessionContinue Reading
The European Union requires that the vast majority of people living in settlements of at least 2,000 people be connected to a centralised sewage system. In Lithuania, only around half of the country’s 60 municipalities have reached this goal. In 2017, the European Commission launched an infringement procedure against LithuaniaContinue Reading
Europe is not ready to defend itself without the help of the United States, but European countries are making great efforts to strengthen their capabilities, Lithuania’s Ambassador to the European Union (EU) Arnoldas Pranckevičius says. “Could the EU today defend itself on its own if the EU-US partnership ends? MyContinue Reading
Around fifth of the respondents said they would support the idea if the tax were levied on both residents and business. Among those polled, around 40% said they would approve of a new tax intended to raise defence funding. Around 16% would be in favour of the tax paid ifContinue Reading
Recalls the overwhelming feeling of fear Reflecting about February 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine, a young girl Gerda (name changed) admits well remembering her emotions and the thoughts that overwhelmed her that day. “I think that for my generation, war in general has always been a challenging concept to understand.Continue Reading
NATO is holding its largest exercise since the Cold War. Its aim is to send a message to Russia to keep its hands off NATO territory, Lithuanian Ambassador to NATO Deividas Matulionis has said. “90,000 troops on exercise is a record number. They are training all over the alliance, acrossContinue Reading
“We understand perfectly well that if we are preparing for war the war would be dissimilar due to geographic reasons and other circumstances. However, Lithuania can learn from Ukraine’s experience. (&) It seems that Ukrainians are interested in moving part of production to Lithuania,” Landsbergis said. In early January, theContinue Reading
NATO’s present defense plans in relation to Estonia and the wider region are perfectly adequate and satisfactory, MP and defense expert Kalev Stoicescu (Eesti 200) says. Stoicescu, who chairs the Riigikogu’s national defense committee, told ERR Thursday that: “NATO’s defense plans for the Baltic States, and the entire region inContinue Reading