Latvian President: We need permanent presence of US troops in Eastern Europe

Latvian President Egils Levits stressed that a permanent NATO military base in Latvia is "absolutely" needed in order to protect the country against any potential Russian aggression there, Report informs, citing CNN.

"Absolutely. NATO should strengthen the NATO eastern flank. That's the Baltics, Poland, Romania, so that this would be a strong signal to Moscow that NATO is ready to defend the member states," Levits told CNN's Dana Bash on "State of the Union" when asked whether US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken's announcement that NATO is establishing a permanent base in Latvia would help protect the country against Russia.

"I also welcome the American troops in Poland and Baltics, and we need a permanent presence of American troops in this area. I think it is a response to Russian ideas on aggression beyond Ukraine," he added.