December 20-21 Inspector General of the Bundeswehr General Eberhard Zorn and Chief of Defence of the Kingdom of the Netherlands General Onno Eichelsheim will be conducting a formal visit to Lithuania. Generals will visit their soldiers serving as part of the NATO enhanced Forwards Presence Battalion Battle Group in Rukla and discuss key military cooperation issues with Chief of Defence of Lithuania Lt Gen Valdemaras Rupšys.
The meetings will focus on the security situation in the Baltic region and Ukraine, Lithuanian Armed Forces contribution to the prevention of irregular migration prevention at the external borders of the EU and NATO, and Lithuania’s plans to begin contributing to the French-led EU Task Force Takuba in Mali and the EU Military Training Missions in Mozambique (EUTM Mozambique) and in Ukraine.
“NATO membership is our security guarantee. Germany and the Netherlands are the allies who would be the first to respond to a direct threat to Lithuania. My counterparts from the respective countries and I will discuss the intelligence picture potential threats, defence plans and synchronization of possible actions. Force contributions of the Netherlands and Germany are critical. We stand together on a spiritual and value basis, and most importantly, we stand ready to be there for each other,” said Chief of Defence Lt Gen Valdemaras Rupšys.
Chiefs of Defence will also address other military cooperation projects and the 5th anniversary of the NATOP eFP deployment in Rukla (in February 2022), and deliver best oncoming holidays wishes to the Dutch and German troops deployed in Lithuania.
