The German brigade assigned to Lithuania would be moved to the country within 10 days in a crisis, according to German Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht. Her Lithuanian counterpart believes this is “fast enough”. However, Lithuanian politicians disagree on whether this is the deal Lithuania signed for.
Berlin and Vilnius agreed on the brigade’s assignment and deployment to Lithuania at the NATO Summit in June.
According to Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, Germany’s commitment to Lithuania was not a quick arrival in case of a crisis but a permanent deployment of the brigade. “The agreement signed by Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz speaks of a brigade ready for combat in Lithuania,” the minister told the Lithuanian parliament Seimas last Monday.
After Anušauskas was criticised for apparently advocating a position that was not in line with Lithuania’s interests, his position also changed.
“It’s important to maintain these efforts by continuing to work consistently, and the German brigade will be here, just as the German-led NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battle Group is. This is a very clear signal that Germany is not changing any commitments. For our part, we need to work even harder to ensure that the agreements are implemented," the defence minister said last week.
However, the communiqué signed by Nausėda and Scholz in June does not explicitly mention Germany’s commitment to deploy a brigade in Lithuania. What it mentions is the deployment of the brigades’ forward command element – a few dozen people. The agreement also stipulates that the entire brigade would be moved to Lithuania very quickly when needed.
“Initially, led by a permanently deployed Brigade Forward Command Element in Lithuania, this brigade will consist of German combat forces specifically designated for this purpose, potentially augmented by possible multinational contributions, to form a powerful and exclusively dedicated combat formation ready to be rapidly de- and employed,” the communiqué reads.
The German brigade’s forward command element was deployed in Lithuania in September.
Permanent deployment?
The communiqué signed by Nausėda and Scholz should be understood as a commitment by Germany to deploy the full brigade in Lithuania, according to the president’s spokesperson Ridas Jasiulionis.
“The agreement recorded in the communiqué provides for the German command of a well-trained combat brigade deployed in Lithuania. In this agreement, Lithuania commits to providing adequate support and infrastructure,” he said.
“The president expects Lithuania to implement the commitments in the shortest possible period. Lithuania is committed to creating the conditions for the deployment of the German brigade, which is committed to deter and defend against possible Russian aggression in Lithuania,” the spokesperson added.
But does this mean that up to 5,000 German troops would be physically deployed in Lithuania at the same time?
“The communiqué stipulates that Lithuania and Germany would form a joint working group, that ministries and defence ministers would work together to implement this concept. Yes, in the long run, the agreement and efforts will allow increasing the deployed allied forces to the size of a brigade,” Jasiulionis said.
According to the Foreign Ministry, Lithuania has also submitted a timetable, which foresees that the German brigade could be deployed to Lithuania within a few years.
“We want to speed up the process as much as possible [...]. Lithuania is prepared to invest and build the infrastructure in the next few years. The timetable has been drawn up and presented to the German side,” Deputy Foreign Minister Jonas Survila told LRT.lt.
According to the Foreign Ministry, the government has also prepared an investment plan to develop the infrastructure necessary for the German brigade in Lithuania. Some of the necessary funds have been earmarked in next year’s government budget.
The German leadership has not yet reacted to the discussions in Lithuania. However, Matthias Sonn, the German ambassador in Lithuania, said that the number of troops in Lithuania will increase in the future, depending on the infrastructure provided.
“The 41st German Mechanized Brigade of the 1st German Tank Division has been assigned the task of defending Lithuania’s sovereign territorial integrity, since August already,” the ambassador said in a statement.
“Physically, this brigade is already in Lithuania. [...] This will be built up and extended gradually, in step with Lithuania’s impressive efforts at making the required infrastructure available. It will lead to a state where troops of the brigade will rotate in and out permanently to train and exercise, with armour, equipment and munitions permanently prepositioned as soon as the infrastructure is ready,” he added.
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