NATO Secretary General: Transfer of troops to the East is complete
The transfer of NATO troops to the eastern flank of the Baltic countries and Poland has been completed, as stated by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg during his visit to Latvia.
“Today the relocation has been completed,” said Stoltenberg at a ceremony at a military base in Adazi, 20 kilometers from Riga. Thus, NATO fulfilled its promise made a year ago in Warsaw to “defend the union, react to aggression and keep peace,” the alliance’s secretary-general said.
Stoltenberg considers the number of troops in the region sufficient, and no further transfers are planned. At the same time, he urged the countries of the alliance to continue searching for ways to have a dialogue with Moscow. According to him, no one wants to return to the times of the Cold War.
At the July 2016 summit, NATO countries decided to transfer forces to the Baltic countries and Poland to guarantee their security, considering Russia’s actions in Ukraine. Germany commands the NATO international allied battalion in Lithuania, America does so in Poland, the British in Estonia, and the Canadians in Latvia.
Most of the military equipment and personnel from Germany were sent to Lithuania during the winter and spring. They were later joined by soldiers from the Netherlands.
Jens Stoltenberg earlier stated that the international community should continue to exert pressure on Russia to force it to fulfill its obligation to resolve the crisis in Ukraine.