(June 25, 2022)
Shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine in February, the Army’s 10th Special Forces Group, which before the war had been training Ukrainian commandos at a base in the country’s west, quietly established a coalition planning cell in Germany to coordinate military assistance to Ukrainian commandos and other Ukrainian troops. The cell has now grown to 20 nations.
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(today)
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met yesterday with German Federal Minister of Defense Boris Pistorius to discuss a range of global security issues. They reaffirmed their countries’ commitment to supporting Ukraine for as long as it takes, including through the continued provision of security assistance. They reviewed preparations for the upcoming NATO Summit in Vilnius. They also discussed efforts to expand partnerships in the Indo-Pacific, noting the importance of bolstering global resilience and countering the challenges posed by the People’s Republic of China.
(28.06.2023)
Secretary Austin thanked Minister Pistorius for Germany‘s significant assistance and contributions to Ukraine. He also thanked Minister Pistorius for German support to bolster NATO‘s Eastern Flank, including support to U.S. and NATO force deployments to and through Germany.
The leaders also discussed a range of other global challenges, including issues in the Indo-Pacific.
(June 14, 2023)
The hope in the push is that once Ukraine is a full member of the alliance, Russia would not dare to try to topple the government in Kyiv because an attack on one NATO country is considered an attack on them all. Ukrainian membership has become a “consuming debate,” both in Europe and inside the Biden administration, according to one senior U.S. official who is deeply involved in the discussions.
Only Germany has sided fully with Mr. Biden, though some of the other 29 allies have their own quiet doubts about Ukraine’s readiness to fully join the alliance — and the risks that NATO nations could get sucked directly into a conflict with Russia in the future.
‚The president and the prime minister will also discuss the joint US-UK leadership on critical emerging technologies as well as our work to strengthen our economic security.‘
Biden will then hold talks with current NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg on Monday.
Ukraine is set to top the agenda for their talks which will take place one month out from the summit and will give other NATO countries an inkling of what to expect from Kyiv‘s most powerful western ally.
Rasmussen said: “If Nato cannot agree on a clear path forward for Ukraine, there is a clear possibility that some countries individually might take action. We know that Poland is very engaged in providing concrete assistance to Ukraine. And I wouldn’t exclude the possibility that Poland would engage even stronger in this context on a national basis and be followed by the Baltic states, maybe including the possibility of troops on the ground.
“I think the Poles would seriously consider going in and assemble a coalition of the willing if Ukraine doesn’t get anything in Vilnius.
(June 25, 2022)
Shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine in February, the Army’s 10th Special Forces Group, which before the war had been training Ukrainian commandos at a base in the country’s west, quietly established a coalition planning cell in Germany to coordinate military assistance to Ukrainian commandos and other Ukrainian troops. The cell has now grown to 20 nations.
(June 28th 2022)
The extent of Western material support was perhaps best symbolised by Ukrainian special forces operating in the contested Donbas regions, which the Times highlighted had American flag patches on their equipment and carried new Western-supplied portable surface to air missiles and both Belgian and American assault rifles. Efforts on the ground in Ukraine were supplemented by considerable support provided to Ukrainian personnel in NATO member states themselves, an example being training for Ukrainian commandos in Germany provided by the U.S. Army’s 10th Special Forces Group. At Ramstein Air Base in Germany, U.S. Air Force and Air National Guard personnel simultaneously trained the Ukrainian Air Force.
(January 14, 2020)
Their tasks could include slowing the advancing units of an aggressor nation by destroying key transportation infrastructure such as bridges, attacking enemy forces at choke-points and potentially serving as forward observers for NATO aircraft responding with air strikes.
(October 8, 2019)
The State Partnership Program (SPP) is a National Guard Bureau initiative that links states and territories with partner countries around the world to foster mutual interests, establish long-term relations, enhance U.S. national security interests, and promote political stability. Through the SPP program, the Illinois National Guard is partnered with Poland and the Michigan National Guard is partnered with Latvia.
(July 3, 2019)
West Virginia Army National Guard (WVARNG) Special Forces Soldiers with the 2nd Battalion, 19th Special Forces Group (Airborne) recently completed the first irregular and unconventional warfare training iteration for members of the Polish Territorial Defense Forces and Latvian Zemmessardze as a part of the Ridge Runner program in West Virginia.
Ridge Runner is a WVARNG training program that provides various National Guard, active duty, and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) ally nation armed forces training and experience to in irregular and asymmetrical warfare tactics and operations.
(…)
Officials from the Baltic states blamed Russia and claimed that Poland should invoke NATO’s Article 5 in retaliation. Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky accused Russia of “terrorism” and said NATO needed to “act” against this “attack on collective security.”
Joe Biden, speaking at a NATO summit in Madrid today, announced the creation of a new base for the US Fifth Army Corps in Poland – the first permanent American base in the country – along with 3,000 extra soldiers to be sent to Romania and ‚enhanced‘ troop rotations for the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Two more squadrons of F-35 fighters will be deployed to the UK, Biden added, along with additional air defence systems for Germany and Italy, and another two destroyers which will be stationed at Rota Naval Station in Spain, bringing the total to six.
On May 10 Poland’s President Duda was in Romania to co-host a virtual conference of the Bucharest Nine (9) group with Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis, The members of the comparatively new bloc are Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia; all former members of the Soviet bloc and of the defunct Warsaw Pact.
Greetings were sent to the meeting by President Joe Biden, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and North Atlantic Treaty Organization Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
Eines der aktuell prominentesten – und kostspieligsten – Infrastrukturprojekte der Europäischen Union ist die „Rail Baltica“. Dahinter verbirgt sich der Plan, eine Schnellbahntrasse von Tallinn über die baltischen Staaten bis nach Polen zu legen und damit auch an das restliche westeuropäische und nicht zuletzt deutsche Netz anzubinden. Nachdem die ersten Pläne viele Jahre zurückreichen, ist es auffällig, dass gerade in jüngster Zeit wieder Schwung in das Projekt kam: „Die Rail Baltica galt als vorrangiges Bahnprojekt der EU.
The Latvian parliament, the Saeima, chose a new State President May 29 in a special session. Following two hours of debate a vote was held which saw Egils Levits confirmed as the next head of state.
(19.11.2018)
(08.12.2012)
Composed of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Sweden, the group, dubbed the New Hanseatic League, is starting to have some influence.
He said that in case of military conflict, Latvia must be capable of repairing its military equipment on the spot, instead of sending them abroad.
Exit poll shows pro-Kremlin party on 19.4%, with a pro-EU, pro-Nato party in second with 13.4%
VENTSPILS – Farmers in Kuldiga region in western Latvia have started disposing of their cattle because lasting drought has resulted in shortage of fodder.
Inga Berzina, the chairwoman of the Kuldiga region‘s local council, said the municipality will ask the Cabinet of Ministers to declare the state of emergency in agriculture and to grant financial aid to farmers to at least partly compensate them for drought damage.(…)
Last time it rained in Kuldiga was on May 3.