Lithuania – The UK sends a ‘small number’ of troops internationally

The defense minister announced on Monday that the United Kingdom would send “small numbers” of troops to Lithuania amid tensions over an increase in Russian troops near Ukraine.

“In the spirit of solidarity, the UK will send a small number of troops to support Lithuania with intelligence, surveillance and intelligence. This deployment will help strengthen Lithuania’s ability to cope with tensions on its border with Belarus,” the ministry said. On Twitter.

“Britain and Lithuania share concerns about the deployment of Russian troops on the border with Ukraine and the current migration crisis on the border between Lithuania and Belarus,” said British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, justifying the deployment.

German reinforcements began arriving in NATO member state Lithuania on Monday.

With more than 100,000 Russian troops concentrated on the Ukrainian border, fears are growing that a major conflict could erupt in Europe.

Russia, which annexed Crimea in 2014, supports pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine and continues to deny any aggression. On the contrary, it says it is threatened by NATO’s expansion in Eastern Europe and is demanding “security guarantees”, including that Ukraine never join the organization.