Lithuania asks NATO air commander to beef up Baltic defences

Lithuania’s Deputy Defence Minister Žilvinas Tomkus met with the Commander of NATO's Allied Air Command, General James H Hecker, on Thursday, asking to beef up defences in the Baltic states.

During the meeting at the Lithuanian Air Force Air Base in Šiauliai, Tomnkus asked for the commander’s personal leadership to deploy more assets, including fighter jets and systems, the Defence Ministry said in a press release, LRT reports.

The Baltic states have been seeking for NATO to upgrade the air policing mission to an air defence mandate, which would include more fighter jets and air defence systems. In mid-June, NATO agreed on a rotation air defence model.

"The decision on the NATO Air Defense Rotational Model is a timely and crucial one for successful deterrence and ensuring a smooth transition from NATO's air policing mission to air defence. The priority now is to immediately implement the NATO Air Defence Rotational Model, starting with NATO’s eastern part,” Tomkus said.

On the sidelines of the July NATO summit in Vilnius, the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania also signed an agreement expanding airspace for NATO activities in the region.

NATO allies were given unrestricted access to the combined Baltic airspace for large-scale training activities.