Germany's Security and Defence Policy since NATO's Madrid Summit - A Shift in the Making?

Since the beginning of Russia’s renewed and full-fledged war of aggression against Ukraine beginning this February, and President Putin’s announcement in December 2021 that he intends to reverse the previous European security order, questions about deterrence – and, if necessary, defense – on NATO’s eastern flank have increasingly come to the fore of the Euro-Atlantic agenda. The Baltic States, which are particularly exposed from a geostrategic point of view, are the focus of special attention in this context since Estonia and Latvia border directly on Russia. While Lithuania, the third Baltic Republic, is not an immediate neighbor of Russia, it shares a border with Belarus – a country that is in the firm grip of the Kremlin. All three countries on their own would be outnumbered by Russian troops.