On January 29 through 30 Chief of Defence of Lithuania Major General Jonas Vytautas Žukas was attending the annual Nordic-Baltic Chiefs of Defence meeting in Kongsvinger (Norway). This year the aim of the meeting was sharing views on regional challenges and identifying prospects of cooperation.
"The Nordic-Baltic CHODs meetings are a functional format for discussing and developing regional defence cooperation. I believe, knowledge of each other's capabilities, challenges and schedules will help us pursue common goals more efficiently," MG J.V.Žukas said after the meeting.
Topics of provision, training and ongoing operations and standbys of the Danish, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Finnish and Swedish militaries were addressed at the meeting. The meeting agenda also included discussions on the Nordic-Baltic military capabilities, cyber defence and upgrading air surveillance.
Chiefs of Defence meet in Nordic-Baltic format once per year in a different country. Last year the meeting took place in Latvia, Malpils. Lithuania launched defence cooperation with Nordic countries in 1994 by signing the first military cooperation agreement with Denmark which was already a NATO ally at that time. Constructive Nordic-Baltic defence cooperation is developed since establishing the Baltic Security Assistance Forum (BALTSEA) in 1997.
When the Lithuanian Armed Forces was re-established, Scandinavian countries assisted Lithuania in modernising weaponry and training soldiers and military units, a considerable number of Lithuanian military graduated from various long-term qualification improvement courses in Scandinavian countries, the Iron Wolf Brigade has been assigned to the Danish Division and taking part in joint training events since 2006.
The Nordic countries are also supporting various trilateral Baltic military cooperation projects. Norway and Denmark deployed capabilities to the NATO Baltic Air Policing Mission, roughly 40 Lithuanian soldiers are on standby with the Swedish-led European Union Nordic Battle Group (NBG) this year.
Spokesperson to the Chief of Defence of Lithuania Captain Mindaugas Neimontas
Photo credit: Mats Grimsæth, Norway (left to right: Finland's, Lithuania's, Sweden's, Norway's, Latvia's, Denmark's and Estonia's CHODs).
