Scholz vows to protect Baltic states

Pabrade (dpa) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has promised NATO partners in the Baltic Sea region Germany’s reliable military support for defence. “Germany stands unwaveringly on the side of the Baltic states,” Scholz said in Pabrade in Lithuania, where he was visiting German troops. “And this means that we protect each other and that every state can rely on us to protect every centimetre of their territory.” 

Because of their proximity to Russia on NATO’s eastern flank, the Baltic states are particularly in the focus of security policy just now. Since the Russian attack on Ukraine, Scholz has already visited the Baltic states several times to publicly pledge Germany’s solidarity with the region. The governments in Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia warn that Russia, following the war of aggression against Ukraine, could also decide to put NATO’s willingness to defend them to the test and could establish the necessary military preconditions to do so within a few years. 

While in Lithuania, the German chancellor also visited German soldiers who are taking part in a major NATO exercise. According to the German government, it is the biggest NATO manoeuvre since the Cold War ended around 35 years ago.