NATO does not consider the upcoming Russia–Belarus Zapad military drills to pose a threat, an adviser to the Lithuanian president said on Tuesday.
“NATO intelligence has no indications so far that the Zapad will be a large-scale exercise that could pose a threat,” Deividas Matulionis told the Žinių Radijas radio station.
The Zapad drills, scheduled for September, will take place in regions bordering the Baltic states and Poland. Before the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the drills simulated a war against NATO and involved tens of thousands of troops.
According to Matulionis, the data indicates that the exercise will be limited in scope. During the exercise, NATO allies will also demonstrate their will to “ensure the deterrence and defence of our territory”, he said.
“Therefore, there is no need to dramatise, but the situation is being monitored,” the presidential adviser said.
Matulionis, Lithuania’s former ambassador to NATO, began his new role as chief adviser on national security to President Gitanas Nausėda on Monday.
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
