Disinfo: Lithuania's loss of sovereignty to the US threatens the safety of its citizens

Summary

On 30 August 2021 Lithuania opened a military training camp Camp Herkus for US troops. It was a celebration of the lost sovereignty. The increased presence of foreign troops on Lithuanian territory threatens the Baltic states because as a result of provocations they could be involved in a military conflict with Belarus and Russia. Military and political dependence of Lithuania on the US also threatens the safety of Lithuanian citizens. This being said, the Pentagon has no guarantees to its allies whatsoever.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about lost sovereignty and vassal Baltic states, as well as about NATO and the US military presence in Europe - it claims that the United States may not protect its European allies in times of need.

On 30 August 2021 Lithuania held the opening of Camp Herkus, the new camp for US troops, which can accommodate approximately 500 soldiers. US battalions of approximately 500 troops have been rotating to train in Lithuania since 2019. During the opening ceremony, Lithuanian Defence Minister Arvydas Anušauskas said that he hoped for “a permanent presence of our allies in our country”.

Lithuania is an independent state, which makes sovereign decisions about its foreign and domestic policy. It became a full member of NATO in March 2004 and Lithuanian society has a strongly favourable opinion of NATO. NATO's increased presence in the Baltic Sea region has been at the request of the Baltic states following Russia's aggressive actions against Ukraine.

The claim that the US, meaning NATO in this context, is not planning to defend its Eastern and Central European members is ungrounded. Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty is the critical component of the Alliance – it assumes that if a NATO Ally is a victim of an armed attack, every other member of the Alliance will consider this act of violence as an armed attack against all members and will take the actions it deems necessary to assist the Ally attacked.

NATO has enhanced its forward presence in the eastern part of the Alliance, with four multinational battalion-size battlegroups in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, on a rotational basis. These battlegroups, led by the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany and the United States respectively, make clear that an attack on one Ally would be considered an attack on the whole Alliance.

Read similar disinformation cases: the US always abandons its allies, Poland and the Baltic states do not fully believe in NATO and Article 5 as they demand additional security guarantees and US troops will not defend Poland in case of a Russian attack.

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  • Reported in: Issue 267
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 13/10/2021
  • Article language(s) Russian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Lithuania, US, Belarus, Russia
  • Keywords: Lithuanian military, Sovereignty, NATO, US presence in Europe
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