Germany expands Baltic presence amid rising tensions with Russia

Germany has announced plans to station 4,800 military personnel and 200 civilian Bundeswehr staff in Lithuania on a permanent basis by 2027, in a move aimed at bolstering NATO’s eastern defences and deterring Russian aggression.

The new deployment will be centered in Rūdninkai, near the Belarusian border and close to Lithuania’s capital, Vilnius, as well as in Rukla, near the country’s second-largest city, Kaunas, BILD reports.

The German contingent will be organized under the 45th Armored Brigade, established in April 2025. By the end of 2027, the brigade will be fully operational, taking over responsibilities previously handled by rotating NATO units. The initial troop presence, currently at 500, is set to rise to 1,800 personnel.

NATO has maintained a presence in Lithuania since 2017 through the multinational Lithuania battle group, comprising 1,000 troops under the command of the Bundeswehr.

The 45th Armored Brigade will operate alongside the Lithuania battle group and include the 122nd Armored Grenadier Battalion from Bavaria, the 203rd Tank Battalion from North Rhine-Westphalia, and associated support services. The brigade is designed to respond immediately to any attack on Lithuania or other Baltic states, with any invasion of Lithuania automatically triggering a NATO-wide response.

By Vafa Guliyeva