NATO has sent more warships to the Baltic Sea in the run-up to the Vilnius summit, according to Giedrius Premeneckas, commander of the Lithuanian Navy.
"The [Lithuanian] Navy is allocating its capabilities to satisfy certain niche needs during the summit in Vilnius, and there's certainly an increase in the presence of allied ships in the Baltic Sea in our region. They provide, first of all, air surveillance, maritime situation surveillance and interoperability," the commander told BNS on Tuesday.
The Navy is in constant contact with allied ships and information is being exchanged to avoid "some unplanned or provocative action by another state", Premeneckas added in reference to Russia.
The allied force includes German, US, Italian and Polish vessels.
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"The number of these ships might fluctuate at times, and these are the main capabilities that have been deployed," Premeneckas said.
"They do not need to be close to our shores, they are at their deployment sites in the Baltic Sea, they have far-reaching maritime surveillance systems, air surveillance systems, they are interacting with both the Navy and their HQs, and they are also interacting with our Defence Staff that is ensuring the security of the event," the commander said.
The NATO summit in Vilnius will take place between July 11 and 12.
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