US to increase its military presence in Baltic States

Estonia’s Minister of Defense Hanno Pevkur said after a meeting of the contact group for assistance to Ukraine with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany that the US minister confirmed a pending increase in the presence of US units in Estonia, Report informs referring to The Baltic Times.

“Secretary of Defense Austin confirmed that, as agreed at the Madrid Summit, the United States will increase the continuous rotation of US units and training exercises in Estonia and the other Baltic countries in the near future. This is a strong signal of the continued US presence in the region and will help to enhance our common deterrence on NATO’s eastern flank,” Pevkur said through spokespeople.

At the fifth high-level meeting held in the so-called Ramstein format, at the level of ministers of defense, representatives of more than 40 countries discussed further assistance to Ukraine, in which supporting the training of Ukrainian defense forces is becoming more and more important.

According Pevkur, Estonia will continue to support Ukraine with armaments and, in the future, with training in ever increasingly volumes. “The clear message from today’s meeting is that training is becoming as important as arms and equipment in supporting Ukraine, as it supports the growth and sustainability of the Ukrainian armed forces. This will be crucial in the coming months, when Ukraine has a real opportunity to seize the initiative on the battlefield,” said Pevkur.