 "German soldiers march at a formal inauguration of a German brigade for NATO's eastern flank in Vilnius. AP")
Germany has sent permanent troops overseas – and it is a big deal.
Germany has announced the permanent deployment of thousands of its troops in Lithuania – the first time it has done so since World War II.
The development came in the backdrop of Chancellor Friedrich Merz making a visit to Lithuania.
“This is a historic day,” Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda said after meeting Merz. “This is a day of trust, responsibility and action.”
But what do we know? And why is this such a big deal?
What do we know?
As per The Guardian, the ceremony in Lithuania was attended by Merz, his defence minister Boris Pistorius and Nausėda.
Dozens of military helicopters roared over the central cathedral square in Lithuania’s capital, Vilnius, as the ceremony wrapped up on a rainy Thursday afternoon, with hundreds of troops and spectators attending.
It was held to mark the formation of a new armoured brigade.
The new unit will consist of 4,800 German soldiers as well as 200 civilian staff.
It will reach 100 per cent operational capacity by 2027.
An advance party started work on setting it up just over a year ago and expanded into an “activation staff” of about 250 people last fall.
The 45 Armoured Brigade is expected to see its troops stationed at Rukla and Rudninkai.
The stationing in Lithuania marks the first time that a German brigade is being based outside Germany on a long-term basis since World War II.
Why is this such a big deal?
Because Lithuania lies in Europe’s Baltic region**.** It borders Russia and Moscow’s ally Belarus.
More importantly, it is a fellow member of North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and an ally of Germany.
“Together with our partners, we are determined to defend the alliance territory against any aggression. The security of our Baltic allies is also our security,” Merz was quoted as saying by The Guardian.
This troops are being deployed to strengthen Nato’s eastern flank and protect Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia.
All three Baltic states formerly belonged to the Soviet Union.
They are now members of Nato and the EU – and worried about what Russia might do next.
As per Business Insider, Lithuania is one of the highest spenders on Nato when measured as a percentage of its GDP.
It is also a fierce ally of Ukraine.
Indeed, Nausėda at the press conference claimed “Russia’s aggressive revisionism” was imperilling the entire continent.
“We understand the threat and believe that we can face up to the threat with our allies,” Nausėda said.
He added that Lithuania wanted to meet its new Nato goal of spending 5 per cent of gross domestic product on defence by 2026.
The move from Germany, which is the powerhouse of Europe, is essentially a signal to Russia – which invaded Ukraine in 2023 – try us at your own peril.
Business Insider quoted Brigadier General Christoph Huber, the commander of the 45th Armored Brigade, as saying “We’re not only moving toward operational readiness, we’re taking responsibility.”
“For the alliance, for Lithuania, for Europe’s security,” he said. “As a sign of our determination to defend peace and freedom with our partners.”
Merz told the event that “protecting Vilnius is protecting Berlin.”
Germany has been eyeing bolstering its military after years of not doing so.
This is in part due to its actions during World War I and II.
The country also has had a ‘debt brake’ – which limited borrowing against defence spending over 1 per cent of its GDP.
However, Germany has recently done away with that.
Germany spent just 1.51 per cent of its GDP on defence in 2022 and 2.12 per cent of its GDP on defence in 2024, as per Business Insider.
However, it has pledged to do more.
As have all the other Nato members in the backdrop of Russia’s actions in Ukraine and US President Donald Trump’s demanding that they stop ‘freeloading’ off of Washington.
Merz added that Berlin’s strengthening of its own military also send a signal to its allies to invest in security.
“Germany is investing massively in its own armed forces. With this, we also want to send a signal to our allies: let us now invest with determination in our own security,” Merz said. “Together with our partners, we are determined to defend alliance territory against every — every — aggression. The security of our Baltic allies is also our security.”
With inputs from agencies