But in the end, the Americans said that its European allies should form the fourth battalion themselves, in order to play a “greater role in their own defense.” The news came amid recent meeting in Brussels, which were attended by foreign ministers of all NATO member countries.
NATO officials were planning to deploy a total of four thousand troops in the Baltics in the framework of an effort to strengthen the military bloc’s presence in Eastern Europe. Those forces were supposed to be divided between Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.
NATO’s Secretary-general Jens Stoltenberg said that NATO leadership recommended to deploy multinational battalions to Eastern Europe, but said that the decision regarding their location would be determined during the NATO summit in July.
Russia has repeatedly condemned the NATO buildup on its borders.
