In a move that is intended as a signal to Moscow, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Defense Minister Boris Pistorius went to Lithuania yesterday to inaugurate the German military base currently under construction there, which will host nearly 5,000 soldiers after its completion at the end of 2027. The base is close to the borders of Belarus and the Russian exclave Kaliningrad. This will be the first permanent stationing of German troops in that region since the end of World War II.
Addressing the advance contingent of 400 soldiers, Merz declared that this was a historic day because “we are now taking the defense of the Eastern flank of the alliance in our own hand. This is the beginning of a new era.” Pistorius, who initiated the permanent stationing, declared: “This is the biggest such German project ever,” with the heavy combat brigade sending a clear message of Western resilience to Moscow.
