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During the struggle against the terrible consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic and ensuing consequences in the national economy, the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense bought a batch of new firearms to finally abandon the pistols of different caliber.

The Armed Forces of Lithuania has already passed the first batch of German pistols HK SFP9 SF Paddle. This was reported by the press service of the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense.

Lithuanian servicemen will receive them in accordance with the agreement concluded last year by the Defense Resources Agency under the Ministry of National Defense and the German company Heckler & Koch.

“We provide a new high-quality leap in the Lithuanian army with these pistols of the German manufacturer. We want to provide Lithuanian troops with modern and advanced weapons,” said the Deputy Minister of Defense Vilius Semeška.

The Ministry of Defense stated that these German pistols were chosen as the most responsible needs of the Lithuanian army.

The need for such pistols is very dubious against the background of a non-ending coronavirus pandemic. In addition, in Lithuania, there is an acute issue with vaccination of the population. The fact is that the vaccine purchased into insignificant volumes and the entire population will definitely not be vaccinated.

Against this background, the purchase of about 5000 superdudged pistols for 865 euros per one seems to be causing questions about unwastefulness.

Unfortunately, this is not the first purchase of expensive weapons against the background of enormous economic problems within the country. It is worth remembering the purchase of the 168 M577 armored personnel carriers from Germany for 1.6 million euros. At the same time, the Lithuanian army acquired a batch of G-36 assault rifle in the amount of 12.5 million euros.

In addition, the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense continued to fill its army with outdated military equipment. So, in 2016, the country once again acquired about 200 units of the former military equipment in the amount of about two million euros. That time the technique arrived from the Netherlands.

Also, Naval forces have several ships that were in service in other countries and were written off as unnecessary. Two trawlers (type Hun) from the UK, several Norwegian (type Storm) and Danish (type Flyvefisken) patrol boats. At the same time, none of the ships have a missile weapon, although a complex of GM rocket weapons on board is the main trend of the naval forces in the 21st century.

Recently, the Ministry of Defense of Lithuania wanted to build a huge military facility in the West of the country, but the research showed that due to natural features, the designated territories do not meet the needs of the army in order to conduct comprehensive military exercises on them.

In this regard, the Minister of Defense of Lithuania Arvydas Anušauskas and the Minister of Environment Simonas Gentvilas agreed that the place for the new military landfill will be sought throughout Lithuania. This was reported by the press service of the Ministry of Environment of Lithuania.

“The new military training area of the Armed Forces of Lithuania remains a draft state importance, because the modernized Armed Forces of Lithuania, as well as the NATO allies deployed in our country and arriving at the exercises, need more space for military training,” said Anušauskas.

Based on the fact that Lithuanian army is only about 20,000 servicemen, it is possible to make a simple conclusion: such a huge territory for the military training area is necessary for the location of U.S. troops on it and other NATO allies, which will later translate this place in the status of a military base.

Indeed the United States remains Lithuania’s strategic partner and the main ally in ensuring security in the Baltic region. The United States makes investments in adaptation of Lithuanian military areas to military needs, aside from other areas of cooperation, as part of security assistance programs. At the same time, the United States is forcing Lithuania to increase military spending, even despite the negative consequences of the coronavirus on the economy.

At the same time Lithuania fears that financial flows to them could decrease.

That is why deploying as many U.S. and NATO troops as possible on their territory is one of the main goals for Lithuania at present time.

Actually Lithuania emphasizes the importance of foreign military presence on their territory in every possible way. Constantly growing military expenses, purchases of outdated military junk and permanent military maneuvers already cause nervous disorders from ordinary people.

At the beginning of this month, the U.S. Department of Defense media Stars and stripes has officially announced the deployment of a new military base of American Special Forces in Latvia. To be precise, it is one of auxiliary airfield for the U.S. Special Forces, which main headquarter is located in the UK. The new base is expected to expand NATO’s operations in the Baltic States.

The U.S. contributed $3.7 million to the project through the European Deterrence Initiative, the Pentagon program that funds efforts aimed at preventing Russian aggression on NATO’s eastern flank.

“This project, along with other important European defense initiatives, represents our continued commitment to our friend and ally, Latvia,” Lt. Col. Juan Martinez, a spokesman for Special Operations Command-Europe, said in a statement.

In fact, this is not a defensive facility at all. Over the past five years, the Pentagon has prepared a foothold on Russia’s borders, due to spending millions of dollars on improving military infrastructure and conducting additional exercises in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

By the way, at the moment Russia is the main military threat to NATO until at least 2030. This was confirmed in the report on the reform of the Alliance, which was published following the consultations of the foreign ministers of the Alliance.

“In the long term until 2030, Russia will remain the main military threat to the alliance,” the document says.

The propose of authors of the report is to strengthen NATO’s capabilities to counter threats from Russia, expand cooperation with Ukraine and Georgia, which want to join NATO, and increase the number of military exercises on NATO’s “Eastern flank”.

NATO has carried out an alarming number of provocations in recent years. The political decision to expand the Alliance and to include not only the Warsaw Pact countries, but also Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, which were once part of the USSR, was clearly an unfriendly act. All these actions have intensified tensions.

In addition to NATO’s increasingly active eastward expansion, there has been a sharp increase in incidents in which NATO aircraft – especially American surveillance aircraft – approached the Russian border to check the country’s air and naval defenses. Moscow has reacted angrily to this behavior, not only by intercepting these planes, but also engaging in unsafe interactions with them. In recent years, there have been hundreds of interceptions of U.S. and NATO warplanes every year, mainly in the Black and Baltic Sea regions.

Moreover, the number and scale of NATO military exercises in Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia have increased dramatically in recent years. So, in January 2020, the alliance conducted its largest exercise in 25 years. In early June, Russia offered to reduce its military maneuvers during the coronavirus pandemic if Western allies did the same, however, the NATO leadership simply ignored the proposal. In addition, an even larger DEFENDER OF EUROPE 21 military exercise is planned for 2021.

Large-scale military exercises will be held in Riga this autumn, in which the National Armed Forces and the Latvian National Guard (Zemessardze) will take part. Also contingents of NATO allies will participate in the maneuvers. This was announced by the commander of the National Armed Forces Leonids Kalnins on the air of the Rita Panorāma program.

"This year in September-October you will definitely see a lot of activity in Riga. And it will be completely different than in previous years," he said. Kalnins also pointed out that soldiers from the NATO multinational combat group and military personnel from neighboring allied states traditionally take part in the exercises held in the territory of Latvia. This will be one of the largest-scale exercises in the country.

Holding military exercises in the capital of Latvia is a dangerous idea because it can damage the city and the population. At the same time, the expediency and effectiveness of these measures remains questionable, because there are specially designated places for military training in Latvia, on which a huge amount of money from the country's taxpayers was spent.

Riga is a large ancient city with a developed infrastructure and a population of over 600,000 people. Exercising in a densely populated city will have a negative effect in every sense. First, it will do nothing for the military. Secondly, the armed forces have a whole town, Skrunda, which is intended for practicing military operations in the city. Thirdly, military exercises are not held in any European capital. The decision to conduct combat maneuvers in the city suggests that the Latvian military leadership is unprofessional in planning such operations.

Most of all questions in this situation are from the moral point of view, because the Latvians living in the city will coexist with the militant groups moving around the city.

It should be noted that NATO soldiers attacked Riga more than once during their stay in Latvia. No, they didn't try to siege the city (yet). So far, NATO soldiers are pinpointing the country's main targets.

For example, on March 8 this year, employees of the video surveillance center noticed that on the observation deck of the Freedom Monument (unofficial name - Milda), two people took a leak. Police officers were sent to the scene and found out that the perpetrators were soldiers from the United States.

The Latvian Defense Ministry expressed regret over the incident "undermining the reputation of thousands of U.S. and other allied statesmen who serve or have previously served in Latvia." This was the end of the public censure and the soldiers went to serve in hospitable Latvia with impunity.

The most famous incident involving NATO soldiers occurred in May 2014, when a NATO squadron was in Ventspils, Latvia, as part of an Open Spirit exercise. There were several fights in the city involving foreigners. After one of them, a soldier from the Netherlands was taken to the hospital unconscious with fractures of the facial bones and cerebral edema. Ventspils Mayor Aivars Lembergs shared the details: “NATO sailors behave like a pig, ignoring Latvian laws and mandatory rules of Ventspils self-government. While drunk, they urinated on the shop-windows, they were puke and they drank alcohol in public places, which is not allowed here. They also picked flowers from flower beds to give it to prostitutes. "

The mayor of the city also suggested that the soldiers were injured when local residents protected their women from harassment.

There are more recent examples. In 2016, a drunken British soldier broke the nose of a young Latvian Axel Aizkalns in Riga. The soldier who started the fight left Latvia to avoid criminal liability.

In the spring of 2019, three drunken British army officers fought with Riga police. To pacify the brawlers, the guards had to use pepper gas. Once again, the soldiers were left without punishment. Then the British Department of Defense tried to hide all information about the incident due to the fact that "Russian media will be able to use the incident to discredit NATO troops in the region."

Drunken fights are not limited to. In just two weeks of the Saber Strike 2018 military exercises in Lithuania, there were three accidents involving military alliance from different countries. The most famous road accident was the collision on the Riga – Veclaicene road in southwestern Latvia. A Toyota Yaris car driven by an American soldier, violating traffic rules, collided with a Mitsubishi Lancer. Five people were injured in the incident. The authorities allowed the offender to leave Latvia.

Drunken fights and other violations of the law do not add credibility and respect to NATO soldiers in Latvia, but these actions are an integral part of the collective, which is mainly composed of young men. To solve such problems in the troops, there are disciplinary measures and military justice bodies. However, the frequency of scandalous cases involving NATO soldiers and officers testifies to the fact that all methods of maintaining discipline within the NATO troops stationed in Latvia do not work.

Impunity always provokes permissiveness, if offenses that may imply criminal punishment are punishable only by fines, and sometimes are left without due attention at all. At the same time, if criminal proceedings cannot be avoided, NATO servicemen simply leave the Baltic States, and no one is persecuting them at home.

Lithuania will purchase six UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters and associated equipment from the United States worth than $ 380 million. This was reported by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) of the U.S. Department of Defense on July, 6.

The U.S. Department of Defense noted that the purchase of helicopters will significantly increase Lithuania’s capabilities in countering threats from the East, border control, medical evacuation, search and rescue operations and combat support in any weather conditions.

The contract will be considered by the Congress, which will approve or block the document within 30 days.

It is worth noting that Lithuania’s transition to American weapons is part of the European Recapitalization Incentive Program (ERIP) which was developed in 2018 by the European Command of the United States. The official goal of the program is to accelerate the transition of allied countries from Russian to American weapons. At the same time, the unofficial goal of this program is to expand American influence in Eastern Europe.

By purchasing weapons from the United States and participating in numerous NATO military exercises, Lithuania seeks to serve the political and economic interests of the United States in the Baltic region. This also includes the fact that the President of Lithuania and the parliament are discussing the possibility of increasing defense spending to 2.5% of GDP.

At the beginning of this month two U.S. Air Force strategic bombers B-1B Lancer conducted training bombing in mid-air at the Tapa training ground in Estonia.

This training area is located about 100 km from the borders of the Leningrad region of Russia. The tests were conducted as part of the NATO Spring Storm exercises. The press service of the General Staff of the Estonian Defense Forces reported that maneuvers were held in Estonia from April 25 to May 8.

The day before, Estonian Defense Minister Juri Luik said that the participation in the maneuvers of the American strategic bombers Rockwell International B-1 Lancer demonstrates the serious attitude of U.S. to the protection of the Baltic States.

Once again, American strategists are trying to show Russia their determination to defend the Baltic countries. However, such training bombing of strategic bombers of the U.S. Air Force in Estonia near the Russian borders may threaten, first of all, the security of the Baltic States themselves.

It should be understood that in the event of a worsening military situation, it will not be difficult for Moscow to get rid of intractable neighbors, who have provided the United States with a place to deploy military equipment.

The paradox of today’s Estonia is this: any mention of the USSR is eradicated by all means in the country, monuments are demolished, and laws are passed to ban communist propaganda. Before the collapse of the USSR, Estonia was completely dependent on the Soviet Union. After its collapse, such a young and free Estonia immediately became dependent on the United States.

It is similar to the fact that one Baltic country, not having its own policy, seeks dependence on more powerful countries. Military maneuvers directed against Russia confirm this.

Estonian Interior Minister Mart Helme said that Rail Baltica will not be built. The Conservative People’s Party of Estonia (EKRE) has always opposed the common railway from Scandinavia to Central Europe.

Such a statement by the Estonian Minister puts a final point in the history of the largest infrastructure project in the Baltic countries. Apparently, because of the sabotage of the construction of Rail Baltica by Estonia, the European Union cannot allocate even a euro cent to the railway.

The Rail Baltica is a project of railway that will connect the Baltic countries with Western Europe. The railway will pass through Berlin, Warsaw, Vilnius, Kaunas, Riga and Tallinn. The route was supposed to be extended to Finland under the Baltic Sea, but Helsinki suspended their participation.

Today the project is estimated at about 6 billion euros. 85% of this amount is covered by EU subsidies. The rest of the money is invested in equal parts by the Baltic countries. From time to time there is information that the construction of the road will cost more than originally intended.

Rail Baltica is called a “lifeline” for the economy in Lithuania, because the new railway will increase the speed of trains, increase passenger and cargo flows. Such a project will be able to bring more profit to all Baltic States.

Ernst & Young Baltic predicted that the social benefits of the project will amount to 16 billion euros, and if you include financial expenses of 6 billion euros, the net benefit will reach about 10 billion euros.

It is also estimated that the Rail Baltica project, in which all lines will be electrified, will be beneficial in the fight against climate change, which will significantly reduce air pollution.

Rail Baltica railroad was conceived as the physical embodiment of Baltic unity. However, now politicians of one of the key countries of the project declare: We are against!

“Actually, Rail Baltica will not go any further. Yes, land is bought, some people sit and get a normal salary, but in reality the project has been suspended. And this is a big thanks to us, it was we, who stopped it,” said Estonian Interior Minister Mart Helme, speaking on Estonian radio.

The minister of finance of Estonia (son of Interior Minister), vice-chairman of EKRE Martin Helme also clarified the words of his father:

“Rail Baltica is doing things that are already beneficial to the economy. The money that was spent, it also went to the construction of viaducts and a tram line in Tallinn. Even if the remainder of Rail Baltica is never realized, this tram line to the airport is a good idea, in my opinion. As a slogan, one could say that money was spent on Rail Baltica, but you need to look at the details. We try to stand for our expenses, which are important and useful, but not to help the construction of the railway,” Martin Helme said.

The words of the Minister of Finance of Estonia mean the actual betrayal of Latvia, Lithuania and the entire “Baltic unity”…

If the European Union needed a reason to refuse to finance the European railway, now it has it. Brussels has already cut spending’s in the EU draft budget so much and even reduced subsidies to Eastern Europe before the crisis. Now, the ruling party and the ministers of one of the countries applying for European money, are proud to say that with their efforts one of the largest projects in Europe with funding from the EU budget has actually been disrupted.

All this suggests that the time of unity and solidarity in Europe has passed. Politicians are not able to agree among themselves. Because of this, as always, the residents of the Baltic countries are suffering.

The number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the NATO combat group in Latvia has increased dramatically.

The first case of coronavirus infection of NATO troops in Latvia became known a month ago – on March 25. On March 31, Commander of the National Armed Forces of Latvia Leonīds Kalniņš, reported that two Latvian servicemen were infected with a new coronavirus.

The Commander went into isolation, ceasing to inform society about measures to counter COVID-19 in the army. The warning in social networks was sounded by relatives and friends of the military who are on rotation in Latvia.

The majority of infected were Canadian troops who arrived from Edmonton about two months ago.

20 Canadian soldiers tested positive for coronavirus. It was confirmed by Lt. Col. Eric Angell, the commander of the multinational battle group.

“Yes, 21 soldiers have tested positive for the virus. We have taken the necessary security measures, but not everyone has the same immunity. All necessary measures are being taken. The soldiers are isolated” said Lt. Col. Angell.

Despite the outbreak of coronavirus, NATO troops continue to enter and leave Latvia. Soldiers carry out their duties, including exercises that were planned at the training area.

So, from 13 to 18 April, military exercises Steel Brawler took place on the firing range of the Daugavpils region. About 600 military personnel and 100 military vehicles were deployed in the area near the city of Daugavpils in the south of the country.

In addition, in June this year NATO’s large-scale maneuvers in the Baltic Sea Baltops are due to take place.

“The work on the Baltops exercises is ongoing. There is a standard process: exercises are expected in June or July. Based on the scale, complexity, location and the time of the exercises, we conclude that they are necessary. At the same time we remain ready to make adjustments,” said General Tod Walters, the head of the US Armed Forces European Command (EUCOM).

It is worth noting, that earlier other countries of the alliance abandoned the exercises in order to avoid the deterioration of the current epidemiological situation.

On May the 1st the Spanish Air Force is to take over the lead of Baltic Air Policing, which is NATO’s mission safeguarding the airspace over the Baltic Allies Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

The Spanish F-18 fighter home base is Zaragoza Air Base in the northeast of the country some 300 km away from the Capital Madrid.

“My country will be actively supporting the mission almost three and half thousand kilometers away from Zaragoza, home to our wing back in Spain, while at the same time ensuring Air Policing at home,” said the Spanish Detachment Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Jesus Gutierrez Gallego.

For Spanish pilots this trip will be the third in a row.

Recently, the Ministry of Defence of Lithuania reported that last week, NATO fighters rose five times to escort Russian military aircraft. Then Russian planes flew in the international space over the Baltic Sea.

As noted in the department, the pilots flew out on assignments every day for a week. In four cases, these were Russian cargo carriers An-26, in one – the Su-24 fighter.

Russian aircraft did not violate the borders in any of these cases, so even the Belgians look at the “exploits” of their pilots with bewilderment.

“What is the point here? Russians flew in international airspace. It seems that the Belgian Air Force was farther from home than the Russians,” one of the readers commented on the publication of the Lithuanian Ministry of Defence on the interception of Russian aircraft in the sky over the Baltic Sea.

It should be understood that all flights of the so-called “mission to protect the airspace of the Baltic countries” take place exclusively for training pilots in a possible theater of operations. Thus, NATO pilots study the enemy live.

In turn, the Lithuanian politicians, supporting the hysteria about aggressive Russia, did everything possible to make their country the hottest place of a possible military conflict of superpowers.

Realizing such a scenario is very simple: the Spanish Air Force, which will control the airspace of the Baltic countries, already has the sad experience of handling military equipment.

It is worth recalling the accidental launch of an air-to-air missile in the sky over Estonia in August 2018, which occurred due to a mistake of the pilot of the Spanish Air Force fighter. According to the military, the ammunition flew about 80 kilometers and fell in Endla Nature Reserve away from settlements.

On the 16th anniversary of the country’s accession to NATO, Lithuanian Minister of Defense Raimundas Karoblis came up with a well-known myth: our state is an equal member of the alliance. “We are stronger than ever before and we are grateful to the Allies for their efforts in strengthening the defense capabilities in the region and their willingness to help when it necessary” said Karoblis.

If you look at the facts, Lithuania is fighting alone with the epidemic of COVID-19 infection. However, like all other countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

You just need to look at Italy, which does not have time to bury the dead. The NATO allies apparently forgot that they were allies and turned a blind eye to the help that the Italians lack so much. It is more likely that NATO member countries live by the formula “self comes first”

Germany has shown how such “solidarity” in the Alliance looks like. Due to the COVID-19 virus, Germany without any reason blocked the supply of personal protective equipment purchased by the Hungarian leadership (masks, respirators, gas masks, gloves, protective suits). This was recently announced publicly by Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

Despite the fact that several hundred soldiers with coronavirus have already been gathered in the Lithuanian barracks, of which almost 30 are NATO soldiers from the multinational battalion battle group, no one is in a hurry to evacuate them or at least offer help with their treatment.

Thus, Minister of Defense of Lithuania Raimundas Karoblis, either does not understand what is happening in the countries of the world in a pandemic or lives in a parallel reality. Despite the refusal of NATO assistance, he states: “Lithuania does not plan to abandon its obligations to jointly strengthen the military alliance and does not intend to change amount of defense spending.”

These are quotes from the same holiday report of Karoblis. He recalled how, in 2018, in response to the “occupation of Crimea in 2014,” the government of Prime Minister Saulius Skvernyalis first allocated 2% of GDP for military spending. This level has been preserved in the next and current years, and by 2030 it should amount to 2.5% of the gross domestic product. And this is more than 1.5 billion euros!

Further, the minister pondered on the procurement of new military equipment and weapons. In particular, the latest volley fire artillery systems, medium-range air defense systems and other things, without which it is impossible to “put in place an aggressive Russia.”

And at the end of the speech, as usual, the Minister of Defense said twith pathos: “90% of the population of Lithuania welcome the country’s participation in NATO”. The conclusion is very controversial, especially if such a survey would be conducted today.

From all this, the conclusion follows: Lithuanians will again have to donate the last penny to help the army which is suffering from the virus, while the government will continue to plunder the budget, allocate big amount of money for defense and purchase obsolete military junk from around the world.

Why to spend money on treating people and soldiers? It is better to buy a few broken tanks, and even better to buy a lot of golden spoons!

Stryker of 2nd Cavalry Regiment of the U.S. Army caught fire on the road in Poland. In the military vehicle were two people who were not injured in a fire.

This accident with the U.S. military in Poland is not the first. So, in March 2019, two people were hospitalized after a hard collision of three American cars. The incident occurred between the towns of Brzesko and Novy Sacz in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship in the south of the country.

In addition, in February 2019, a minibus with seven U.S. troops turned over in Lower Silesia. As a result, the vehicle was seriously damaged, and six soldiers needed hospitalization.

Last year an American Stryker armored personnel carrier crashed into a tree in northeastern Poland. The military transport column was moving along the state highway. At one point, one of the armored personnel carriers drove into a moat and crashed into a tree. As a result, two soldiers were injured. According to witnesses, a U.S. Army soldier behaved strangely after the accident. Perhaps he was drunk.

The Baltic region is preparing to accept the large-scale exercises “Defender 2020”, and such cases, unfortunately, will be repeated again and again.

Today all of NATO military maneuvers are associated with increased danger to the population of the host country. From year to year the leadership of the alliance increases the number of NATO exercises in the Baltic countries and every year we see such incidents.

We suggest recalling the main “successes” of our defenders:

In the summer of 2014, the Mayor of Ventspils Aivars Lembergs sent a message to the past Secretary General of the North Atlantic Alliance, Anders Fog Rasmussen, about the behavior of NATO seafarers in his city. Lembergs said that the foreign military behave “as invaders who do not recognize the sovereignty and laws of Latvia.”

“NATO sailors in Ventspils behaved like a pig, ignored the laws of Latvia and the rules of self-government. Having drunk, they urinated in public places and on shop windows, they vomited, publicly consumed alcohol, which is not allowed. They also picked flowers from flower beds to give them to prostitutes,” said the mayor of Ventspils.

In the summer of 2015, a Toyota Yaris car running by an American soldier collided with a Mitsubishi Lancer car on the Riga-Vezlejtsen road. Five people were injured, including well-known race car driver Vasily Gryazin. The fault in the accident was completely on the side of the driver from the USA, but the culprit was allowed to quietly leave Latvia. The case on this occasion was transferred to the prosecutor’s office a year later, in June 2016.

In February 2016, drunken American soldiers crushed a water park in the Lithuanian resort town of Druskininkai. After drinking a large amount of alcohol, 20 U.S. servicemen had fun at the local water park. In the building of the sports complex they loudly rustled, grimaced, broke the decorative wall, and also pestered the staff of the water park and solicited employees of the entertainment complex. The pool workers called the police, however, according to the established Baltic tradition, they were not brought to criminal responsibility.

The most resonant incident involving U.S. soldiers was the desecration of the Lithuanian state flag. In April 2016, U.S. soldiers tore the flag of the Republic of Lithuania from the prosecutor’s office building in Klaipeda and outraged it. The incident became known only a month later.

Lithuanian authorities classified information after they found out who exactly committed the act of vandalism.

Flag desecration was not reported either in the local police report or in the national police report of the Police Department. Since in Lithuania it is impossible to hide any incident, law enforcement agencies were forced to justify that they did not disseminate information about the incident, since the government ordered it to be classified. None of the American soldiers who have outraged the flag of Lithuania incurred responsibility.

In May 2016 in Riga, the taxi driver left his car and went to drink coffee. When he returned, he saw a rumpled hood, a mutilated roof, a broken door, a man dancing on a car and a crowd of loudly laughing people around. Police detained hooligans. Since in Latvia it is forbidden to prosecute “defenders” from the international battalions of the North Atlantic Alliance under the law, drunken military were released and no one suffered responsibility for the crushed car.

One of the famous scandals with the participation of the NATO military was a fight that staged drunken German soldiers in the Lithuanian city of Rukla. The drunk dispute quickly turned into a fight, as a result of which one of the servicemen was hospitalized.

Such fights occur in the Baltic States all the time. In November 2016, drunken British soldiers beat local residents in McDonalds in Riga. A soldier from the UK who started the fight hastily left Latvia to avoid criminal liability for beating the Latvian Axel Aizkalns. The British press, according to the already worked out scheme, immediately linked the incident with the “hand of Moscow”.

In February 2017, five drunken Czech soldiers fought in Klaipeda, in June four drunken German soldiers beat up in Jonava, a month later drunken Dutch soldiers staged a fight over a bill in a restaurant. All the robbers eventually went home: Lithuanian police detained them, but each time they let them go. Lithuania and other Baltic countries do not have the right to judge NATO soldiers for crimes committed in the Baltic territories.

In September 2017, residents of the Adazhi village near Riga complained about the mountains of rubbish left behind by the NATO military stationed at the local military base. Adazhi residents find jars, plastic bottles, used condoms and packs of army rations near the site.

On June 7, 2018, four armored personnel carriers of the U.S. Army, Stryker, collided in a major road accident in the Prienai district. 13 U.S. troops sought medical assistance.

Another accident happened on the night of June 9 near the town of Kazlu-Ruda: the Stryker armored personnel carrier drove off the road and crashed into a tree.

Next – another accident: not far from the town of Pabrade, an army SUV with two military men turned over.

With great joy we can say that none of the civilians was injured. However, this is only an exception to the rule.

All these incidents are hidden from the public, because these military criminals go unpunished and have no problems with the law. NATO soldiers in Baltic states are doing what they want and no one can stop them.

By increasing the number of exercises in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, the NATO leadership is putting at risk the populations of these countries, their women and children. But if disaster happens, NATO soldiers will just fly away, and the inhabitants of Lithuania or Latvia will be left face to face with the consequences.

The Lithuanian government recognized that high defense spending and a huge military budget are the main problem of the lack of money in the country.

By 2030, defense spending will reach 2.5% of GDP. Today it already make up a little more than 2%, but most likely the authorities thought about the priorities.

In 2018, all parliamentary parties signed a collective agreement – the defense system needs to be subsidized, and by 2030 funding for the military sector should reach 2.5% of GDP. The treaty was signed by both the ruling parties and the opposition.

But at the end, a year later, the ruling elites began to face facts. No one says defense is not important. No one belittles the importance of the military in the life of the country. But no one says that the system needs to be modernized from time to time, but this needs to be done gradually and not to the detriment of the rest of the population.

Today hundreds and thousands of tired people are ready to take to the streets of Lithuania again – teachers, doctors, university teachers, firefighters, pensioners. All these people require the state to fulfill its obligations and raise salaries. People are tired of promises and say that the situation is critical. This time, the authorities repeat the same thing – there is no money, there are not enough funds, we are doing everything we can.

Officials have already acknowledged that high defense spending and a huge military budget are the real problem of a lack of money. In 2019, the parliamentary committee on budget and finance’s representatives actively discussed this topic.

Members of parliament proposed to reduce defense spending. Taking into account reduction in economic growth and further stagnation, money needs to be redirected to social needs. Society will not understand and approve excessive spending on military affairs when there are more pressing problems.

But did society understand the actions of politicians who annually increase the level of defense spending to 2.5% of GDP? The answer is logical – society did not understand. This is evidenced by a variety of public polls.

In 2019, the research company “Spinter Tyrimai” published a survey, the results of which clearly indicate that most of the inhabitants of Lithuania are against an increase in military spending.

Respondents were asked to answer the following question-statement: “At present, Lithuania allocates almost 2% of GDP for defense. Until 2030, it is planned to allocate 2.5% for these needs, since it is necessary to continue the modernization of the armed forces and strengthen capacities. Do you approve this position of the authorities?”

Only 8.9% of respondents fully agreed with this statement. 25.8% answered “approve” rather than disapprove. At the same time, 21.6% spoke out “absolutely against” this position. 30.3% of respondents answered – “do not approve”, rather than approve. 13.4% replied that they have no opinion on this matter.

Today we already know that the Lithuanian budget for 2020 provides for a reduction of more than 10 million euros in defense financing.

In general, the government of the republic plans to allocate 1 billion 17 million 68 thousand euros for these purposes. The previous draft budget provided for 1 billion 27 million 418 thousand euros.

There are too many contradictions inside NATO, because the alliance has already turned into a commercial project. Trump is trying to force Europe to abandon its own war industry in favor of the US. However, this is not only business and lobbying for the interests of the American military-industrial complex.

In the future, this will lead to the absolute defenselessness of Europe to the outside world and complete dependence on the United States.

Trump requires alliance member countries to comply with the NATO standard for the allocation of 2% of GDP for defense. However, not all countries are ready for such a big waste. For example, Germany has no plans to comply with the rule set by Trump.

It is noteworthy that also the inhabitants of Lithuania do not support the increase in defense spending, but the authorities do not refuse this idea. For example, Minister of Defense Raimundas Karoblis once again emphasized the need to gradually increase spending to 2.5% of GDP.

The process of militarization of the Baltic region has already been launched and the United States plays a major role in this game. This project is aimed against the integration and political initiatives of the European Union.

The defense ministers of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, who met in Tallinn in December 2019, did not even hide their skepticism about the idea of ​​military independence and sovereignty of Europe, constantly emphasizing the role of the United States as the sole guarantor of security and the main ally.

This position suggests that the leaders of the Baltic countries and Poland are ready to sabotage any European defense projects that are independent of Washington.

“Our countries play a key role not only for the Baltic region, but for the entire alliance. We are located on the eastern flank, which is strategically important for NATO. This was confirmed by the Warsaw summit, which decided to allocate units that strengthen the military presence in our territory,” said Polish Minister of Defense Mariusz Blaszczak.

The American military presence in Poland is a security issue not only for Poland itself, but also for other allies, especially Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, ”he added.

It is clear that Poland spends huge amounts of money on its armed forces based on the fact that the United States relies on them in the region. This money partially goes to Polish own military production, but what about Lithuania? It is clear that the part of the money allocated for arms purchases will go primarily to the United States, and the second to the European countries of NATO. This means that local industry will not receive anything from this.

The armed forces of the Baltic countries are not developing. Lithuania’s world-famous purchases of obsolete US military junk, which had fought with Saddam Hussein in Iraq, do nothing to increase the country’s defensive potential.

It seems that the ruling elites of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia do not use common sense and intentionally do not develop their armies. Indeed, in the Baltic countries there are already military formations of NATO allies, which, on the basis of Article 5, supposedly will protect these countries from any aggression. However, this is not accurate.