At a meeting with the heads of state and government of the three Baltic states, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) reaffirmed that he would do everything possible to prevent war in Europe. “De-escalation is the order of the day,” said Scholz on Thursday evening in Berlin. “We want to maintain peace and stability on the continent.”
Scholz emphasized that Europe and NATO are “close and determined” to de-escalate the difficult situation along the Ukrainian-Russian border. Germany takes the concerns of its allies in the Baltic States “very seriously”. More than 500 German soldiers are already stationed in Lithuania. He had decided to increase the quota again “significantly”.
Scholz had invited Kaja Kallas, Prime Minister of Estonia, Gitanas Nausėda, President of Lithuania, and Krišjānis Kariņš, Prime Minister of Latvia, to the Chancellery to discuss common security interests. The states are members of the EU and NATO. Lithuania’s President Nausėda said it was “vital” to strengthen its eastern flank. NATO must be present. Estonia’s Prime Minister Kallas praised the Federal Republic as a “loyal friend and ally”. Germany is one of the leading countries in monitoring the Baltic airspace. At the same time, her Latvian counterpart Kariņš made it clear that the Baltic States hoped for even more support. “Germany is the largest economic power in Europe. Germany has fundamental weight,” he said. Germany must therefore “take on a leading role in leading Europe through these difficult times”.
Lithuania supplies anti-aircraft missiles to Kiev
The three visitors made it clear that they wanted more support for Ukraine. Every country has the right to decide for itself about its future, they stressed. Before the visit, it had become known that Ukraine would soon receive weapons from Lithuania. The US-made Stinger anti-aircraft missiles should arrive in the coming days, Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė tweeted during a visit to Kiev. “I sincerely hope and wish that Ukraine will never have to use them.”
In his crisis policy, the Chancellor is following in the footsteps of his predecessor. The East German socialized Angela Merkel was also the mediator between East and West in Europe. The fact that Scholz is meeting with the Baltic states before his trip to Ukraine and Moscow planned for next week is a signal that he is taking their interests with him into the upcoming talks. On the day of his return from the United States, the chancellor made an East-West gesture and revived the format of the Weimar Triangle. He consulted with French President Emmanuel Macron and Polish incumbent Andrzej Duda.