The German brigade assigned to Lithuania would be moved to the country within 10 days in a crisis, according to Lithuanian and German defence ministers.
“We will ensure that the brigade can be moved to Lithuania in a short period of time, within 10 days. It is therefore very important that we do exercises on a regular basis,” German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht told a news conference in Rukla, in central Lithuania, on Saturday.
In Rukla, Lambrecht and her Lithuanian counterpart, Arvydas Anušauskas, inaugurated the forward command element of the brigade assigned to Lithuania a few months ago and observed the unit’s first exercise.
Some 250 military personnel and 80 military vehicles arrived in Lithuania last week for the exercise.
Apart from the command element, the rest of the brigade will be stationed in Germany and will come to Lithuania for drills, according to Lambrecht.
“Individual units, or perhaps even the full brigade, will come to Lithuania and train here,” she said.
According to Anušauskas, the deployment of the German brigade within 10 days would be fast enough.
“In Ukraine’s case, the information about the concentration of Russian forces on its border was known for almost 90 days,” he said.
Earlier, Lithuanian officials said they wanted the German brigade to be permanently deployed to the country.
Developing infrastructure
Lithuania currently lacks the infrastructure to accommodate a larger number of allied troops, as the brigade consists of around 3,000 to 4,000 troops.
Lambrecht said that Germany will deploy more ammunition and weapons to Lithuania, which will make it easier to move troops between the countries.
“It is important to take these steps as we prepare to move the entire brigade here,” she said.
According to Anušauskas, Lithuania is developing its military infrastructure and training areas to ensure the necessary conditions for allied troops’ presence in the country.
In preparation for hosting more allied troops, Lithuania has announced plans to build three new military complexes with a capacity of accommodating 800 troops each and to expand other barracks.
‘Lithuania can count on us’
Berlin and Vilnius agreed on the brigade’s assignment and deployment to Lithuania in June, amid concerns about the security of NATO’s eastern flank in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Anušauskas described Russia as a direct and long-term threat.
“Germany’s leadership following the decision to reinforce the forward presence in Lithuania […] shows its commitment to security in the entire Baltic region,” he said.
Lambrecht said that “Lithuania can count on us”.
“We are ready to defend each other and stand by each other's side, as allied partners should,” she added.
Germany is also leading NATO’s multinational battalion stationed in Lithuania since 2017.
Air defence
On Saturday Anušauskas also said that Lithuania will join Germany’s initiative to bolster Europe’s air defence.
“I confirmed during the meeting today that we will participate in this European air defence initiative,” the defence minister told journalists on Saturday.
He did not specify in what form the country would participate in the initiative.
According to Lambrecht, Germany expects to sign a letter of intent on the development of a European air defence system with its allies at the NATO defence ministers’ meeting scheduled for October 12-13.
In the German minister’s words, air defence in Europe is an area “where improvements are needed”.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in August proposed creating a missile defence system in northern and eastern Europe.
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