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Stronger collective defence and reliable deterrence is NATO’s best response to security challenges from the East, the Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Linas Linkevičius said at the international Lennart Meri Conference that is held in the Estonian capital Tallinn on 13–14 May.

During the discussion the Minister underlined that prepositioning of the alliance’s troops is one of the main elements of credible deterrence in the Baltic region. The force should be multinational, sizable in military terms and deployed permanently.

The head of the Lithuanian diplomatic service also stressed that considering and resolving on a response, it is important to take into account the source and nature of threats.

Threats posed by various international governmental and non-governmental actors call for different response measures.

Foreign Minister noted that NATO’s adaptation measures for addressing security challenges are not aimed at other states. NATO is a defence alliance. Its measures of collective defence and deterrence are meant to avoid military conflicts.

L. Linkevičius also noted that strengthening of deterrence and defence should not be limited to military measures. What states need is higher resilience of their societies, higher cyber and energy security, and effective communication.   

The agenda of the Lennart Meri Conference shows that the focus of the debates is on security challenges that western countries need to address and possible responses to those challenges. The upcoming NATO Summit in Warsaw, relations with Russia, migration, and global economic trends are discussed there, too.