The Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation Baltic States organized a three-day visit for a group of German journalists to Lithuania. The goal of the visit was to give them a first-hand look into how Lithuania’s society and political institutions deal with threats to its sovereignty and to get a better understanding of why this nation is such a resolute supporter of Ukraine and so much in favour of increasing military expenditure.
Of course, the biggest topic in Lithuanian security policy at the moment is deterrence and resiliency and the most important part of this is the German brigade, which is set to be fully stationed in Lithuania in 2027. The journalists got the opportunity to visit the future military training base where German soldiers will be stationed and witnessed the fast progress, that the necessary infrastructure projects have made. Our visitors also got to see the final maneuver of the NATO exercise Grand Quadriga 2024 in Pabrade. Here, the German Army showed an impressive example of combined arms operations and Major General Breuer reiterated the importance of deterrence. He also added, standing in front of
all the vehicles that took part in the exercise, that NATO is ready to defend every inch of its territory.
The journalists learned that Lithuania’s commitment to defending itself goes deeper than just military rearmament, that it is rooted deeply in society. During a meeting with foreign minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, he referred to stationing the German brigade in Lithuania as a “historic landmark” and reiterated the countries commitment to it. He highlighted the big public support for it and gave explanations as to why Lithuania has always been at the forefront of every initiative that helps Ukraine win the war. As he puts it: “Inaction becomes an invitation,” regarding Russian aggression.
This ties into what we learned later that day during a meeting with Vilmantas Vitkauskas, who is the head of the National crisis management centre. They continuously monitor the threats to Lithuania’s national security interests and advise the state in how to react to emerging situations and hybrid threats. We also had the opportunity to meet with a representative of the military academy, specializing in said hybrid threats. She briefed us about the threats Lithuania is currently facing in the information space and what Germany and its soldiers can expect once the brigade is stationed here.
The journalists also got to speak with representatives of the “Lithuanian Business Confederation”. Here, they got a presentation by the so-called “4 % Initiative”, hosted in the Cyber City office hub in Vilnius. This initiative is in favour of increasing the defence budget to 4 % to make Lithuania not just more resilient, but also a more lucrative and secure place to invest into. The speakers, all in leading positions within successful Lithuanian businesses, made it clear to the group that resistance to Russian aggression runs deep within every Lithuanian and the local businesses are even prepared to pay higher taxes, in order to be more secure.
This also shows in the support NGOs receive in the country, such as the Blue/Yellow organization. Here the journalists could ask questions to volunteers who have been in Ukraine and helped either with medical assistance, or by collection equipment for Ukrainian soldiers. Something that left a lasting impression on our group was meeting Arūnas Kumpis, a volunteer fighting in Ukraine. His stories and experiences from the frontline were very valuable for the journalists, giving them context as to why Ukraine cannot afford to give up territory and the brutal rule Russia is imposing on occupied regions.
During their three-day visit, the journalists got a good insight into how people in Lithuania think and why the country takes all these precautions. They saw how the whole nation pulls on one -string, to avoid a similar fate to Ukraine, gaining a good perspective on the current mindset in the Baltic states.
