On May 6 Chief of the Defence Staff of the Lithuanian Armed Forces Lt Gen Remigijus Baltrėnas took part in the Defence 24 Days Conference in the capital of Poland, Warsaw. Senior military and political representatives from different countries and subject-matter experts discussed a range of topics on strengthening defensive capabilities.
Speaking at the panel on Where are the Brigades and Divisions – Before the NATO Summit in The Hague, he singled out four challenges awaiting before the Summit: defence spending, meeting the defence commitment to the Alliance in accordance with NATO plans, combat readiness of assigned military units and systems, and NATO-EU cooperation.
“I would like to single out four potential challenges at NATO Summit in The Hague this summer. First, it is defence spending. It is a potentially hot topic, especially when determining the floor and the ceiling, and we will care about what the political leadership will decide. Second, it is meeting the commitments. All the Allies will need to deliver fully on their commitments, while there is an ongoing debate on commitment on defense capabilities required on the basis of the agreed NATO defence plans. Everyone will need to commit capabilities which will be a serious challenge to each Ally. Third, it is maintenance of the combat readiness required for the Alliance defence tasks of the capabilities, units and systems, committed. And fourth, cooperation of NATO and the European Union which should continue to be based on the principle of complementarity,” said Lt Gen R. Baltrėnas at the panel.
He underlined the NATO standards that had been defined a long time ago and had to be met by everyone, when asked about the prospects of NATO transformation before the Hague Summit.
In the debate on the amount of military force and quality needed General underscored the importance of efficiency, capability and readiness, of its developed defense units to Lithuania. Readiness of combat units is one of the key criteria of development that our Armed Forces also abide by.
“Readiness is typically defined in terms of personnel training, ready systems, the right amount and quality of provision set up, and collective readiness is ensured. IT looks like an easy definition but it is s really difficult to complete,” LT Gen R. Baltrėnas noted.
Chief of the Defence Staff noted that presence of the Multinational Battlegroup on the ground is a vital condition for maintaining proper deterrence, because the ability to quickly move forces alone does not have the sufficient deterrence effect. Also, reinforcement plans that are already developed and, even more importantly, tested for the needed force regeneration, replenishment or reinforcement of the force, are also important. “We also need to have pre-stocked different ammunition and equipment sufficient to last through a longer battle. We will have to be confident that the ammunition or the equipment is the right one for us and our Allies alike and we all are skilled to use it. While mobilization, total defence, public resilience, even though difficult to develop, will give an effective and capable military force.”
Lt Gen Remigijus Baltrėnas has been appointed as Director General of the International Military Staff (IMS) in Brussels (Belgium) as of this July. He will take over from Lt Gen Janusz Adamczak of the Polish Armed Forces.
Photo credits: Lithuanian Armed Forces
