Kallas stated that the threat to the Baltic countries has "completely changed" following the revision of NATO plans
Kyiv • UNN
Kaja Kallas said that NATO had abandoned plans for the temporary loss of Baltic territory and strengthened the region's defense. She also warned about Russia's shadow war.
The security situation of the Baltic countries has changed significantly compared with 2022, when NATO’s defense plans at the time envisaged the possibility of temporarily losing territory in the event of an attack. The Alliance abandoned this approach and strengthened the region’s defense, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas said in an interview with LRT, reports UNN.
Details
Kallas recalled that before the 2022 NATO summit, there was a concept according to which, if territories were seized, the allies would liberate them later. According to her, Ukraine’s experience demonstrated the unacceptability of such a scenario.
This has completely changed. At that time, before the 2022 NATO summit, there was a plan based on a remote concept: if territories were seized, they would only be liberated later. Using Ukraine as an example, we saw that such a plan cannot exist
NATO changed its approach to the defense of the Baltic region
According to Kallas, since then the Alliance has reviewed its defense plans, and its members have significantly increased investments in military capabilities. This has made the Baltic region much better prepared for possible aggression, although work to strengthen its defense has not yet been completed.
She also said that there are currently no signs of a possible withdrawal of U.S. troops from the region. According to Kallas, their presence remains an important deterrent to Russia. At the same time, European states must continue strengthening their own contribution to NATO.
Kallas separately warned that Russia is already waging a "shadow war" against Europe, which she said includes sabotage, cyberattacks, and attempts to destabilize European societies.
Speaking about negotiations concerning Ukraine, Kallas said that she currently sees no signs of Moscow’s serious readiness for peace. In her view, the first such signal should be the cessation of Russian attacks on civilians.