Lithuania appealed to the German government to speed up the promised deployment of 4,000 German Army soldiers on NATO’s eastern flank. “We must now focus on agreeing an ambitious and rapid timetable for their full deployment,” Lithuanian Deputy Foreign Minister said in an interview with Welt am Sonntag.
Jonas Survilla added that Vilnius was ready to make “significant investments in the necessary infrastructure to receive German forces”. The Lithuanian politician made a historical comparison in connection with the war in Ukraine.
Lithuania is surrounded by aggressive neighbors
“Today we feel like West Berlin during the Cold War: surrounded by aggressive neighbors from both Königsberg and Russia and Belarus,” said the Lithuanian deputy foreign minister.
– At that time, the security of West Berlin was ensured, among other things, by the stationing of a garrison in the city in the brigade strength of the US Army, the Berlin Brigade. Today, symbolically and practically, we ask the Germans to contribute to our security by permanently deploying a combat-ready German brigade in Lithuania, Jonas Survella added.
At the end of June, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius announced the transfer of 4,000 people. Bundeswehr soldiers to Lithuania as a NATO partner country, in order to protect the alliance’s eastern flank. The condition for the implementation of this operation is the presence of “appropriate infrastructure” and “compliance with NATO’s plans,” as confirmed by Boris Pistorius.
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