Baltic, German and Dutch land forces chiefs review defence plans

The land forces chiefs of Lithuania, Germany and the Netherlands met at the Rokantiškės military town in Vilnius District on Thursday to discuss defence planning for the Baltic region, LRT reported, citing the Lithuanian Armed Forces.

Germany’s General Christian Freuding, Dutch General Jan Swillens and Lithuanian Land Forces chief Nerijus Stankevičius discussed regional defence after learning about the terrain in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

The visit, called “NATO Mission in the Baltic States,” runs from October 26 to 30. German and Dutch land forces commanders and generals are visiting all three countries to assess potential deployment areas for their troops, collective defence requirements, infrastructure and operating conditions in line with NATO defence plans.

“We stand together and defend together. This is our mission in NATO. That is why we must know the terrain well and thoroughly understand the security situation in the Baltic region,” Swillens said.

The meeting was part of the German-Dutch Griffin Seminar, a high-level event held every two years and organised alternately by the two countries. This year, Germany’s land forces command chose defence of the Baltic region as the seminar’s main theme. The seminar aims to strengthen cooperation and support effective defence planning.

Freuding said map exercises could not replace first-hand knowledge of the terrain, and that Germany and the Netherlands wanted to better understand the Baltic countries’ defence plans and develop a shared tactical picture. Stankevičius said the visit had reinforced the importance of assessing critical infrastructure and regional features to strengthen shared situational awareness.

Since July 1, the German-Dutch Corps has been tasked with leading potential NATO land operations in Estonia and Latvia. NATO’s Multinational Corps Northeast is responsible for Lithuania and northeastern Poland.