Baltic security must remain NATO priority, Lithuanian army chief says

Lithuanian Armed Forces Commander General Raimundas Vaikšnoras discussed strengthening NATO collective defence, support for Ukraine and security in the Baltic region at a NATO Military Committee conference in Copenhagen, LRT reported Sunday, citing the Lithuanian Armed Forces.

The two day conference brought together the military chiefs of all 32 NATO member states and the alliance’s senior military leadership. Participants also discussed NATO’s transformation, innovation, the introduction of new technologies and the consolidation of allied capabilities.

The military chiefs of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia held a separate meeting with General Alexus G. Grynkewich, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe. They discussed the security situation in the Baltic region, the defence of NATO’s eastern flank and additional measures to strengthen protection of the Baltic states’ airspace.

“The current security environment requires us to constantly assess our readiness and be able to adapt quickly to changing threats,” Vaikšnoras said. “It is important to us that security issues in the Baltic region remain a focus of the entire alliance.”

In Copenhagen, Vaikšnoras also met with the military chiefs of France, Hungary and Denmark. Their discussions covered military cooperation, improving interoperability, the integration of CAESAR self propelled howitzers into the Lithuanian Armed Forces, NATO’s air defence mission and joint work at the headquarters of NATO’s Multinational Corps Northeast.

The NATO Military Committee conference is held once a year in one of the alliance’s member states. The committee is NATO’s highest military body and provides the North Atlantic Council with military advice based on consensus. Its agenda includes NATO operations, missions, exercises and the development of military capabilities.