By Olha Hembik | 2025-04-23

WARSAW -- Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, NATO has steadily expanded its military presence along the alliance's eastern edge -- from multinational battlegroups to rotating deployments.

Germany's latest move builds on that foundation. In coordination with NATO's broader effort to deter Russian aggression, Berlin is permanently deploying an armored brigade of 5,000 troops to Lithuania.

This decision stems from a 2023 announcement by Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, outlining plans to reinforce NATO's eastern flank.

The move marks Germany's first permanent foreign deployment of troops since World War II, according to Politico.

It is intended to bolster the defense of both Lithuanian and German territory, in line with a roadmap signed in Vilnius on December 18, 2023.

That is when formation of the brigade began.

Guaranteeing allies' security

NATO activated the 45th Armored Brigade during a ceremony in Vilnius on April 1, where it unveiled its coat of arms -- now worn on service members' shoulder patches. The emblem features the national colors of Germany and Lithuania.

"We have a clear mission: to ensure the protection, freedom and security of our Lithuanian allies on NATO's eastern flank," Brigadier Gen. Christoph Huber said at the ceremony.

"In doing so, we also protect NATO territory -- and Germany itself," he added.

The brigade will comprise several battalions, including the 203rd Tank Battalion from Augustdorf and the 122nd Mechanized Infantry Battalion from Oberviechtach.

It will include support units such as a medical center, a signal company and command support teams.

The unit will be based in a new military complex in Rūdninkai, about 30km south of Vilnius, and is expected to be fully operational by 2027.

"The increase in the military presence of allies in Lithuania and the [other] Baltic states as a whole is one of the strategic objectives, since it serves as a means of deterring a potential adversary," Denis Kishinevsky, a Lithuanian journalist covering politics for Current Time, told Kontur.

"And in all government documents -- whether in Latvia or in Estonia -- the main adversaries are identified as ... Russia and Belarus, which is losing the last remnants of its sovereignty."

Presently, 150 German troops are stationed in Lithuania. This number is expected to reach 500 by the end of the year.

The vulnerable Suwałki Gap

Lithuania's strategic position -- wedged between the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad and Belarus, a close ally of Moscow -- makes it particularly vulnerable. Kaliningrad hosts Russian troops, fighter jets, the Baltic Fleet and Iskander missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads.

Lithuania's security is further complicated by the Suwałki Gap, a narrow land corridor linking it to Poland, said Ukrainian political scientist Stanislav Zhelikhovsky.

"There are speculations that if Russia decides it wants to invade NATO territory, it will do so from two directions -- Kaliningrad and Belarus," he told Kontur.

In such a scenario, Russia could sever the Baltic states from the rest of NATO, leaving them exposed because of their relatively small armed forces, he added.

Zhelikhovsky sees Germany's deployment as a deterrent: "Germany carries weight in Europe and globally. This isn't just enhancement of Lithuania's security but also a factor in deterrence. It [challenging Germany] would have terrible repercussions for Moscow," he said.

Lithuania needs a NATO presence on the ground, as opposed to just a treaty commitment without actual NATO troops in sight, said Kishinevsky the reporter.

If NATO's presence grows in the Baltic states, he noted, "it will be harder for Russia to attack [them], particularly Lithuania, because it would be a fundamentally different kind of conflict," he said, echoing Zhelikhovsky.

Germany views the provision of a large unit as a sign of solidarity within NATO during the watershed moment of the Zeitenwende, a turning point in defense policy announced by Chancellor Olaf Scholz just days after Russia invaded Ukraine.

"We accept the challenge that now faces us -- with clear-headed resolve," Scholz said in his 2022 speech to parliament.

The deployment, framed as a demonstration of solidarity with NATO, fulfills Germany's commitment to protecting a free and democratic Europe.

Responsibility for self-defense

Germany's deployment of a permanent brigade to Lithuania is drawing praise from security analysts.

"Washington should applaud the new German base in Lithuania and encourage other ... Western European nations to follow suit with bases in Latvia and Estonia," wrote Wilson Beaver, a senior policy advisor at the Heritage Foundation, in April.

"This is a precedent," Jerzy Mazur, a military analyst and retired Polish officer, told Kontur. "[It] means that NATO is moving from making assurances to actually strengthening defense. It's also a demonstration of Germany's solidarity with Lithuania and the entire eastern flank."

The decision could lead to more allied deployments in the region, he said. "This will enhance the overall security level in the region."

Germany's 45th Armored Brigade has already begun exercises, and work continues on its future base in Rūdninkai.