On September 13–15 Chief of Defence of Lithuania conducted a visit to Prague to attend four sessions on strategic NATO development with Chiefs of Defence and Military Representatives of the Alliance. Apart from the main conference on September 14, General Raimundas Vaikšnoras also had bilateral meetings with his counterpart Chiefs of Defence of the closest NATO Allies.
Upon the arrival at Prague, the Lithuanian delegation met with Admiral Rob Bauer, Chair of the Military Committee, for a discussion on the NATO defence plans and commitment of capabilities in support of them, as well as modernization of the Lithuanian Armed Forces and the Alliance’s support to Ukraine.
The following meeting was with the Inspector General of the German Armed Forces General Carsten Breuer on key aspects of the bilateral partnership. The German and Lithuanian CHODs focused on the guidelines for stationing the German Brigade in Lithuania, Germany’s assistance in developing the Lithuanian division, and acquisition of weaponry and equipment.
Saturday, in between the main sessions, Chief of Defence had a meeting with Chief of Defence of Finland General Janne Jaakkola with whom he discussed both countries’ participation in military cooperation formats. Meeting counterpart of Sweden General Micael Byden, General Vaikšnoras discussed implementation of the Rotational NATO Air Defence Model, collaboration in maritime and air domains, and the countries’ contributions to the common recognized operational picture. The United States force presence in Europe, Baltic Sea region and especially in Lithuania was praised in the conversation between General Vaikšnoras and the U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Charles Q. Brown. They also addressed development options for certain capabilities and other off-camera questions. While Chief of Defence of Portugal, a contributor to the security in the Baltic Sea, was thanked for the persistent deployment of troops to the training cycle with the Lithuanian military and contributions to the NATO Air Policing Mission in the Baltic states.
On September 14, following the main conference, a meeting in Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) format addressed the JEF contribution in hybrid threat prevention, synchronization of operation and initiatives in the context of the NATO defence plans, and initiatives for assistance to Ukraine in the JEF format.
The NATO Military Committee Conference addressed not only the strategic NATO matters but also the security situation in concrete regions, threats in physical and cyber space, recent incidents and ways to prevent them, while bilateral meetings with Chiefs of Defence or military command leaders formulated goals of potential cooperation that military staffs would later develop and implement. The meeting, among other things, had election of the new Director General of the NATO International Military Staff on the agenda; by the vote of the majority, the position was entrusted to Chief of the Defence Staff of the Lithuanian Armed Forces Major General Remigijus Baltrėnas marking a historical moment for Lithuania and a clear demonstration that Lithuania is a valued Ally with clear-cut objectives and top qualification officers.
Photo credits: Lithuanian Armed Forces
