WASHINGTON:The United States has stationed dozens of its Special Operations forces in the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania who fear an imminent threat from an increasingly assertive Russia, The New York Times reported.
\nThe Baltic countries \u2014 former Soviet republics that regained independence amid the collapse of the Soviet Union over two decades ago \u2014 have been alarmed by Moscow\u2019s intervention in Ukraine and the increasing activity of Russian forces in the Baltic Sea.
\n\u201cThey\u2019re scared to death of Russia,\u201d Gen Raymond T. Thomas, the head of the Pentagon\u2019s Special Operations Command said of the tiny militaries of the Baltic states.
\nHe said the three countries are “desperate” for American leadership.
\nMoscow is aware of the quiet deployment of the US troops, the commander added.
\nThe US troops carry with them sophisticated surveillance technology and broad intelligence sources while their Baltic partners possess thorough understanding of Russia’s conventional military tactics and use of cyberwarfare.
\nNato forces, including from the US, have stepped up military exercises in the Baltics and other Eastern European nations in the wake of Russia\u2019s annexation of Crimea and patrolling by Russian military forces off the coasts of the Baltics and Western Europe. Nato will send some 800 to 1,200 troops in each of the three Baltic states and Poland this spring.
\nThe deployment of about a dozen American Special Operations forces in the three Baltic countries is a part of the larger allied military strategy to deter any future Russian aggression.
\nRussia has in the past dismissed fears concerning its deployment of nuclear capable ballistic missiles in a city sandwiched between Lithuania and Poland as routine drills.
\nNervous about the looming threat from their former Soviet overlord, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have increased spending on new defence equipment to $390 million in 2016, from $210m in 2014, the NYT said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON:The United States has stationed dozens of its Special Operations forces in the Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania who fear an imminent threat from an increasingly assertive Russia, The New York Times reported. The Baltic countries \u2014 former Soviet republics that regained independence amid the collapse of the Soviet Union over two decades […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-9073","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n