Lithuanian authorities would like to see a permanent military contingent of the United States on the territory of the republic. About this in an interview with the publication of Defense News, said the Minister of Defense of the Republic Raimundas Karoblis. According to the minister, even a relatively small but permanent military presence of the American army in Lithuania, for example, a short-range air defense unit or an army company, "will seriously strengthen the deterrent potential of NATO."

Carblis noted that even the steps that the alliance has already taken at the moment - the multinational battalions operating on a rotational basis in the region - have significantly reduced the risk of military conflict in the Baltic countries.

“On the other hand, let's be honest: the United States is the most powerful ally, and their deterrent influence cannot be compared with the role of other allies,” noted the Minister of Defense of Lithuania. “I am convinced that Russia will not dare to test NATO in the event that the US military units are located in the three Baltic states on a permanent basis.”

  • Lithuanian Defense Minister Raimundas Karoblis meets with US Marines.
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  • © Alfredas Pliadis / Xinhua

This point of view is partially shared by another Defense News interlocutor, the former commander of US land forces in Europe, Lieutenant General Ben Hodges. According to him, the Pentagon should permanently deploy additional small and specialized units in the Baltic States.

“I believe that we will need logistics, intelligence, communications, and, in general, air defense and missile defense,” he said, explaining that we are talking about forces that take a long time to deploy, but are necessary for creating an important military infrastructure.

However, it’s not worthwhile to count on the appearance of a large object deployed by a contingent of the US Armed Forces on its territory, since the Pentagon’s potential in this matter is not unlimited, Hodges believes. In addition, sending troops cost Washington quite expensive.

According to experts, although the United States would need additional resources and logistic capabilities to deploy a truly large-scale military grouping in the Baltic States, the deployment of a small group of military personnel in the region on a permanent basis would not entail large losses.

The true reason why Washington has so far refrained from taking such a step lies on a different plane, says Sergei Rekeda, director general of the Information and Analytical Center for the Study of Socio-Political Processes in the Post-Soviet Space at MSU.

"The United States does not place its permanent contingent in the Baltic States, because in Washington there are different points of view on the future strategy in Eastern Europe," the expert explained.

“They are well aware that any actions, such as the deployment of a military base in Poland and the strengthening of the military presence in the Baltic States, can lead to retaliatory measures not only from Russia, but also from Belarus,” the source added.

According to him, it is obvious that such steps from the White House would only inflame the military-political situation in the region.

“The head of the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense is in fact in favor of turning his country into a buffer area and putting it under the scope,” Rekeda said.

In turn, military expert Yury Knutov expressed an opinion in a conversation with RT that, despite loud statements, the American leadership understands that Moscow’s plans do not include the initiation of a military conflict in the Baltic republics.

“It is for this reason that the United States is not in a hurry to increase the number of its military in this region. And conversations are only propaganda actions, ”the expert noted.

  • NATO exercises in Lithuania "Black Arrow".
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  • © Ints Kalnins

"Considered as a springboard"

NATO activism in Eastern European countries is one of the most painful topics of relations between the North Atlantic Alliance and Russia. Thus, the guarantees of non-expansion of NATO in the east, which Western diplomats and politicians gave Moscow, became one of the conditions for the unification of Germany and the GDR in 1990. However, NATO did not follow these promises: in the 1990s, the alliance began to expand rapidly towards Russian borders.

In addition, in 2002, Washington withdrew from the Treaty on the Limitation of Anti-Ballistic Missile Systems and began creating missile defense systems in Eastern Europe capable of leveling the concept of a retaliatory nuclear strike. In 2014, Washington spoke openly about the goals of this activity - the White House’s European Reassurance Initiative's strategy talked about confronting Russia.

In 2016, the member countries of the North Atlantic Alliance agreed to deploy multinational battalions in the Baltic republics and Poland, which operate on a rotational basis. The number of each of these formations should not exceed 1 thousand soldiers.

However, as stated earlier in the Russian Ministry of Defense, the real mission and the number of battalions may differ from the stated - NATO uses the battalions as a reason to transfer a large number of armored vehicles to the region.

At the same time, the alliance is working to expand the military infrastructure and improve logistics in Europe. As explained at NATO, this is necessary in order for the military to have the opportunity to quickly transfer forces to the Russian borders if necessary.

NATO also systematically conducts military maneuvers in the Baltics. Exercises take place with minimal interruptions, and every time military and equipment from the countries of the alliance are pulled into the region.

According to experts, during maneuvers, offensive missions of possible invasion of Russian territory are often practiced.

“The leadership of the North Atlantic Alliance regards the Baltic States precisely as a potential springboard in order to completely block Kaliningrad and St. Petersburg,” believes Yury Knutov.

  • Estonian Ambassador to Poland Eric Marmey
  • Reuters
  • © Aaron P. Bernstein

"Symbolic step"

Recall that Lithuania is not the first of the Baltic countries called on Washington to increase its military presence in the region. As the Estonian Ambassador to Poland, Eric Marmey, stated earlier, Tallinn would welcome the appearance of American soldiers on a rotational and regular basis in all Baltic States.

According to Knutov, such rhetoric may in part be dictated by considerations of a purely material nature. The military expert stated that the Baltics are now going through hard times - the unfavorable economic situation even provoked an outflow of young people from the republics.

“The program of financial assistance to the West to the Baltic countries is soon completed, and the question arises: where to get the money? The authorities of the republics are hoping that Americans will pay for the deployment of their bases. On the scale of these countries, such revenues would be a good help, ”said Knutov.

In addition, the proposals to deploy the armed forces in the Baltic States are heard in the United States itself. So, last month a bill was passed to Congress calling on Washington to step up interaction with the Baltic republics.

“The US should lead multilateral efforts to develop a strategy aimed at strengthening cooperation with Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, NATO allies and other regional partners in order to deter aggression from the Russian Federation in the Baltic region,” the bill says.

Similar theses were set forth in the report of the NATO Defense College on the Baltic States. According to its authors, although the probability of a war between Russia and NATO is small, it cannot be completely ruled out. The deployment of the US military in the Baltic States will help reduce the risks of military conflict, the document says.

“Currently, American troops are deployed on a permanent basis in Poland, but not in the Baltic countries. Since the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation compare their power with the power of the United States, the absence of American troops in the Baltic countries will have an extremely negative impact on NATO’s deterrent potential, ”the report authors say.

According to Sergei Rekeda, the political lobby has recently intensified in the United States, advocating an expansion of the military presence in this region, despite the possible costs. In turn, the Polish and Baltic authorities are guided by this group of “hawks”. The expert did not rule out that, over time, the request for the deployment of US military in the region would be satisfied.

“The main question here is who will ultimately take over the financing of these joint projects. In fact, the deployment of the US military can be a symbolic step rather than a military one - this will not affect the security of the Baltic states, ”the expert noted.

“But this, undoubtedly, can become an additional financial burden for the countries of the region,” Rekeda concluded.