British parliament member Geraint Davies says he will ask for more military support from his country for Lithuania and other Baltic states.
“As we return to the UK, we will call on our government to take action to support Lithuania by firstly doubling the UK’s defence commitment to the Baltic states, providing unambiguous deterrence against Russian aggression in the region,” the Labour MP told a press conference at the Lithuanian parliament on Thursday.
The additional support would be aimed at providing “the Baltic states with necessary air defence capabilities to establish a defensive dome protecting the region”, according to Davies.
He added that calls would be made to financially assist Lithuania and other countries that receive large numbers of Ukrainian refugees.
Four British Wildcat helicopters and 100 troops are currently deployed in Lithuania.
Ready for more NATO troops
President Gitanas Nausėda, who attended an extraordinary NATO summit in Brussels on Thursday, also said that Lithuania is prepared to host more NATO troops.
“It is time for NATO to move from deterrence to forward defence as soon as possible,” the Lithuanian president said.
“Lithuania is ready to host larger allied forces and provide all the necessary infrastructure and assistance in our territory,” he added.
Currently, around 3,500 allied troops are deployed in Lithuania, most of them Americans and Germans, with the latter leading a multinational NATO battalion.
Earlier this month, Lithuania upped its defence budget and allocated 40 million euros for setting up three campsites to accommodate some 2,400 allied troops.
Addressing NATO leaders, Nausėda said that Russia’s large-scale war against Ukraine shocked the Western world and the international community, making it clear that Russia posed an “existential threat” to European and global security.
According to the president, Ukraine was not Putin’s only and ultimate goal, and Russia would continue its military aggression if the West did not stop it.
It is necessary to strengthen full political and military support for Ukraine, Nausėda said, adding the West must provide Ukraine with all possible means, including military measures, to defend itself.
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