Deal signed to finalize conditions for German troops in Lithuania

Germany and Lithuania finalized an agreement to station a brigade in the Baltic country, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius and his Lithuanian counterpart Laurynas Kasciunas said on Friday, reported Xinhua.

The agreement underpins Germany's promise to permanently station a combat-ready and independently operational unit in the fellow NATO country, in response to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which fundamentally altered the security situation in Europe.

The German brigade is expected to be operational by 2027, with a permanent presence of up to 5,000 soldiers. They are to be deployed in Rudninkai and Rukla.

An advance party of about 20 soldiers arrived in Lithuania in April and some 120 more are expected to arrive at the beginning of October, according to the German army.

The move to permanently station soldiers abroad is new territory for the Bundeswehr.

The two ministers signed the agreement, which which expands on a previous NATO agreement, and specifies the legal status of German soldiers and civilian employees in Lithuania.

It covers residency and tax status, schooling, public health provision and other aspects.