After Russia's war on Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the three Baltic states feared that they would be surrounded by Russian forces from several sides, especially since two of them - Estonia and Latvia - have direct borders with Russia.

While the third country in the Baltic region - Lithuania - shares a long border strip with Belarus, in which Moscow mobilized about 30,000 soldiers before the war, under the pretext of conducting joint military exercises with Minsk.

Baltics

The Baltic States is a name mostly given to 3 countries in Northern Europe, which are Estonia (the smallest), Latvia, and Lithuania (the largest of the Baltic states).

Finland was previously considered the fourth of the Baltic states, but over time it was excluded from them.

The Baltic states are located on the coast of the Baltic Sea, which is part of the North Sea, which dates back to the eleventh century, as mentioned by Western sources.

Although there are many theories about the origin of the name, this meaning is preserved in the modern Baltic languages, as the word "paltas" in the Lithuanian language or the word "plat" in the Latvian language means "white".

- The Baltic Sea has appeared since the Middle Ages on maps in Germanic languages ​​as “East Sea”, in German: “Ostsee”, in Danish: “Ustaswein”, in Dutch: “Ustsee”, etc.

The Baltic Sea lies to the east of Germany, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, and the term was historically used to refer to the Baltic "dominions" (colonies) of the Swedish Empire and, later, the Baltic provinces of the Russian Empire.

Throughout the 18th century until the 20th century, the Baltic states were part of the Russian Empire.

During the nineteenth century, the term "Baltic" began to replace "Ostsee" as a name for the region, and the term Baltic states - until the early twentieth century - was used in the context of the neighboring countries of the Baltic Sea: Sweden and Denmark, and sometimes Germany and the Russian Empire, but with the emergence of the Nordic Association (Association of the North (Association of the North) Nordic) The term is no longer used to refer to Sweden and Denmark.

During World War I (1914-1918): The Russian Revolution took place and ended the Tsarist Empire.

After the end of World War I, the Baltic peoples resisted the attempts of the newly created Soviet Union to regain control of their lands.

1920: The Soviet Union signed treaties with Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, recognizing their independence, but this independence did not last long.

August 1940: The three Baltic states become Soviet republics once again, after Stalin brings them into the union.

1941: Nazi Germany invades the Soviet Union, and the Baltic states are later subjected to Nazi occupation.

1945: The Soviets retook the Baltic states again.

During the Second World War (1939 - 1945): all the Baltic states lost large parts of their population, and their peoples continued to seek independence from the Soviets.

1990: Democratic elections in the Baltic states saw pro-independence parties win a majority in all three Baltic states' legislatures.

regain independence

1991: Communism collapsed in Eastern Europe and the Soviet rule ended. The three countries declared the occupation illegal and culminated in the restoration of independence.

The Soviets tried to prevent these countries from seceding through economic embargo, and there were violent incidents involving Soviet forces.

August 31, 1994: Russian forces withdrew from the Baltic states completely.

Area and population

Estonia: 45,339 square kilometers and 1.3 million inhabitants.

Latvia: 64,589 square kilometers and 1.9 million inhabitants.

Lithuania: 65,300 km2 and 2.9 million inhabitants.

The World Bank rated the three countries as high-income economies and maintain a very high human development index.

These neighboring countries have the same climatic conditions, cultures and traditions, and Estonia is considered one of the most advanced among them, with its capital Tallinn, Riga the capital of Latvia, and Vilnius the capital of Lithuania.

Membership of the European Union and NATO

2002: The Baltic governments applied to join the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

2004: The three countries gained membership in the European Union.

Between 2011 and 2015: the three countries gained membership in NATO, the Eurozone, and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

2014: After Russia annexed Crimea, the Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) feared that they would meet the same fate after enjoying their independence from the Soviet Union for more than 3 decades.

April 3, 2017: Lithuania's intelligence service reports that Russia has developed the ability to launch an attack on the Baltic states within 24 hours, limiting NATO options to military forces already stationed in the region.

Lithuanian intelligence said - in its annual threat assessment report - that Russia developed its army in the Kaliningrad region last year to reduce the time needed to launch any attack, which could impede NATO's ability to send reinforcements.

2019: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania spend on armaments increased to $2 billion, up from $950 million in 2005, a doubled increase with the support of the United States.

7,000 NATO troops are distributed in Estonia (800 soldiers), Latvia (1,200 soldiers), and Lithuania (1,200 soldiers).

March 29, 2022: The Russian Foreign Ministry announced that Moscow had decided to expel 10 diplomats from the Baltic states.

Moscow took its decision in accordance with the principle of "reciprocity", in response to the three countries' expulsion of 10 Russian diplomats in a coordinated move between them on March 18, 2022, denouncing the Russian military operation in Ukraine.

my question gap

After the attack on Ukraine, the three countries worry about Russia's ability to isolate it from the rest of Europe via the dangerous "Suwalki" divide, the narrow 65-kilometre Polish-Lithuanian border seen as one of NATO's most vulnerable points. .

To the west of this region is the heavily armed Russian province of Kaliningrad, which is Russia's spearhead in the NATO side.

NATO allies were quick to reassure the Baltic states, and the allies recently sent additional forces to the region as part of 3 multinational battle groups of about 1,000 people in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

The United States also has a rotating battalion in Lithuania and has sent reinforcements to its base in Poland.

The three countries seek to increase defense spending among themselves, and Washington is demanding a permanent presence of American forces, and greater reinforcements from NATO in the region.