US seeks proposals to integrate Baltic states into NATO's air defence system: Report

Amid the ongoing war in Ukraine, media reports indicate that the US has asked companies to submit plans for integrating the Baltic states into NATO's air defence system. "The #US has requested proposals from companies to integrate the #Baltic states into the #NATO air defense system (sic)", Nexta tweeted on March 6.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has brought European countries closer together, with minds focused on President Vladimir Putin's broader threat to European security. For air defence, the Dutch are sending rocket launchers. The Estonians are sending anti-tank missiles called Javelin. Stinger surface-to-air missiles are being sent by Poland and Latvia. Machine weapons, sniper rifles, pistols, and ammo are being sent by the Czechs.

Even countries that were previously neutral, such as Sweden and Finland, are providing weaponry. Stingers, as well as other shoulder-launched rockets, are being sent by Germany, which has always been wary of sending weaponry into conflict zones. In total, about 20 countries - the majority of which are members of NATO and the European Union - are supplying arms to Ukraine in order to repel Russian invaders and arm an insurgency, if the war comes to that.

NATO says Putin may view military assistance as risky incursion

At the same time, NATO is deploying military assets and up to 22,000 additional troops to member states bordering Russia and Belarus in order to reassure and strengthen deterrence. However, it is far from guaranteed that European equipment will continue to reach the Ukrainian battlefield in time to make a difference. Regardless of how pleased Brussels is on its efforts, it is a plan that risks escalating the conflict and inviting Putin's reprisal. After all, the flow of lethal military aid into Ukraine from Poland, a NATO member, is aimed at killing Russian soldiers.

Putin sees NATO as devoted to threatening or even destroying Russia through its backing for Ukraine, as he has stated in recent speeches, even as he has raised the nuclear alert level of his own forces to warn Europe and the US of the dangers of meddling. Smaller battles have sparked world wars in the past, and the war's proximity to NATO allies raises the risk that it will entangle other parties in unanticipated ways. However, for the time being, the conflict is in Ukraine, and while NATO and the European Union have stated that their troops would not fight Russia there, they are actively assisting the Ukrainians in their defence.

(With inputs from agencies, Image: AP)