Sponsored by Private Internet Access, Use the following link to access their promotional offer: www.piavpn.com/Perun Hope you enjoy the next entry in my national defence strategy series. I ultimately decided that because the challenges faced by the Baltic States are so similar, and their policies on issues like Ukraine tend to be so similar, it made sense to address them together. I need to flag that there are still obviously significant differences between each of Estonia, Latvia & Lithuania, but for a one hour discussion, I hope you enjoy and understand the way this has been packaged.
How interesting. Now I finally find out my country's defence strategy. I hope though that my suspicions are not correct. Ok. They're correct but I feel tiny bit better.
57:25 As someone from a NATO country, I'm happy to welcome NATO into NATO. Errata aside; Given the shown defense planning of the Baltics and the practicals on the battlefield in Ukraine, what kind of alterations to the former do you think might happen/would be beneficial? Perhaps (small) expenditures to EW or drone capabilities?
Hmm. I wonder if it makes sense for these 3 baltic states to just form a federal Union outright. They have common interests, they seem friendly enough to each other. Why not merge and then consolidate their logistics and high command? Domestic policies can still be done on a provincal level, without interference from the new federal government. The federal government will primarily handle military and foreign policies
I would add one more thing. EU on itself is also a defense packt. While it delegate lots of organization, command and control to NATO. EU members would be obligated to help any EU nation if attacked. An attack on the Baltic states would be an attack on the EU. It is one reason why Russia opposed the idea Ukraine joining the EU.
We had a Lithuanian officer attached to our platoon in Afghanistan. We weren't doing anything high speed, just patrols, check points, and pulling security. But he did every job, no matter how boring or mundane, and never cared about rank. He spent a lot of his six weeks with us in my squad and was always on top of his game. His job in Lithuania was the equivalent of a JTAC or TACP. His English was really good and by the end he was calling in all our air and fire support. He talked a lot about home and his country's fight for independence. His mom sent him pictures of her holding him as an infant at a rally during the fall of the Soviet Union to show his new American friends. He was so proud of those. He had family members who had died in WW2. I never heard him get angry or say a bad thing about anyone, unless he was talking about Nazis or Russians. I reconnected with him on Facebook years after I got out. He had gone reservist and worked in cyber security and was married to an absolute knockout. If the average Lithuanian soldier is half as squared away as he was, any of those countries to the east who may want to conduct some special military operations in the Baltics are in for a rude awakening.
@@airborneranger-ret.. I'm sure he's said he's Australian and has said that he wouldn't do any videos on Australia because of that.. but if he is a kiwi please tell me because I'll unsubcribe immediately
The Baltic states understand what it’s like to get your independence only to lose it again for a generation. They’re determined not to let it happen again.
Estonian here. Few things i need to point out. 1. Those treaties were unconditional soviet surrenders 2. They were hard fought against the reds and the germans. Especially In Latvia where we used naval assets and armored trains to liberate Riga and helped Latvians to achieve the upper hand. 3. They were so successful because we innovated and adapted alot. We mastered the use of armored assaults and maneuver warfare using armored trains and naval landings. And none of it would have happened if the Royal Navy wouldn't have protected our coasts in the beginning and helped us commandeer soviet destroyers. Something Admiral Cowan was told not to do. And we can never forget the thousands of Finnish volunteers who came to help us too.
You could do naval landings because the British Royal navy handed over all caputed red ships to you. Also you forces refused to go further south than Daugavas northern shore leading to the danish liberating Jēkabili. And yes, somi help you, you help us, we help lietuviešiem and everyones better off.
History does not know "ifs" and "would haves". Otherwise, why not talk about how let Adolf Hitler into power? And "if" someone "would've" acted differently, there "would have" not been WW2 at all.
Thanks pooty, for your invaluable contribution! Also he was better than drumpf in kicking European big countries into gear for a better defence of our continent.
@@jeckjeck3119 if the war is fought with keyboards and mouse. yes. otherwise, have you seen or talked to a german soldier lately? i did. they wont fight anything other than their wives, if even that..
It's honestly refreshing and heartwarming to hear a foreigner, even from a friendly western nation, do such a retelling of our 20th century history. Thank you, Perun (or Perkūne, the Lithuanian accusative for Thunder, with the same mythological connotations)
@@jumpergamer1913 there are plenty of sensible people around, who understand these issues, mainly what I meant by my comment was that typical youtubers etc rarely put in the effort to tell the history between us and russia accurately.
Tankies are as persistent as cockroaches and about as noxious… actually, I take that back. It’s unfair to the cockroaches; they’re insects and simply living within the bounds of their evolutionary niches. Tankies *choose* to be noxious shitheads.
@@worldwanderer91Ukraine doesn’t have enough arms or ammunition to arm all the volunteers plus they don’t have enough training capacity. It is strategically important to get the civilians out from the war zone. Civilians unnecessarily complicates the operations and it is definitely not safe to stay there.
@@worldwanderer91 They may not be fit to fight, there are many reasons one could be more of a liability on a battlefield then an asset. Or they may not be able to help in the rear. Besides, if they are sending money back home or keeping Poles agitated for Ukraine, then they are doing their part!
you should becareful about mentioning being an ukrainian. your government is demanding all refugee's be forcefully returned in the EU, Canada and even in Australia.
"Stalin doing Stalin things" Is such a wonderfully dark euphemism. It's phrased this way to avoid the youtube demonetizing algorithm, but having that name become a stand in for unspeakable horrors feels just.
@@qZbGmYjS4QusYqv5 I haven't seen much of that lately. The handful of lefty podcasts and such I listen too generally don't like him at all. The defenses of Stalin I've read seem to be coming from Russian nationalists nowadays.
@NashVybarplease stop with the conspiracy nonsense. Plenty of channels are able to talk about the crimes of communist regimes without the risk of censorship and demonetization, youtubes algorithms are just run by brain dead bots that censor and demonetize at random. Plenty of lefty's get randomly demonetized and censored even for the most innocuous things, while some literal neo nazi channels can run rampant for years without being touched. The only channels that escape this are the really big ones, like Mr Beats or Pew Die Pie, which proves one inescapable fact that youtube only cares about its largest and wealthiest channels while happily screwing over everyone else.
@NashVybar Because what you said is a strawman and not true. It's about graphic descriptions of war crimes and other violence, not who is the perpetrator.
Would like to say a word in for the Estonian army equipment (I'm from Estonia): 1.We have already ordered over 230 new Otokar APC-s from Turkey both is 4x4 and 6x6 configuration. 2. We have already ordered IRIS-T shorad systems 3. We have already ordered 6 HIMARS 4. We have already ordered coastal defense missile systems - Blue Spear 5G SSM 5. To my knowledge as of this day we don't have any towed howitzers anymore (given all to Ukraine) only the K9, but we do have towed mortars (122 & 81mm) And as an end quote, I love your content! :)
Just 2 quick corrections - Iris-T is a mid-range air defense system and of the 230 new APCs, half will be Otokar's 6x6s and half will be Nurol Yörük's 4x4s, which will be arriving in late 2024 and 2025. Additionally, yes, in regards to howitzers, we now have only 36 K9s (24 of which have been delivered, I believe), but we have already procured 6 HIMARSes (should arrive some time next year), lots of loitering munitions (IAI Miny Harpy) and there are plans to buy an additional battalion's worth (12-18) of SPHs (most likeley CAESARs). Also, AFAIK, the first Blue Spears have already arrived here.
“Ask the Poles to stop celebrating they’re going to fight the Russians”😂As a Canadian, I’m pleased to see our deployment in Latvia. NATO is the most important security agreement we have, and need to honour our commitment
Hell yes we want to hear about the Baltic states! These guys have been punching way above their weight class in supporting Ukraine. They might be small, but without them, Ukraine would be in much more dire straits than they currently are.
The Baltic states really don’t want to go back to being seen as “ruZZians” or anything like that, They have been stalwarts in their assistance to Ukraine 🇺🇦
I had the good fortune of training Estonian lads for the shit-show in the Balkans back in the mid to late 90s, and later the privilege of fighting along side them. They taught me a very important lesson: The only willing "member" of the Soviet "union" was Russia. The Baltics were more under changing Danish and Swedish rule (with the majority being practical independence under The Crown) post 1500AD than under Russian rule. Culturally and linguistically they are much closer the Nordics than they ever were to Russia. The Nordics, with the Scandics in particular, were very vocal in the UN to get their status as "occupied" upheld precisely to get hard-liner Americans with "the red scare" to stop seeing the USSR as a monolithic block. I swear to god that I will punch people on the nose if they refer to the Balts as "just another kind of Russians". They're our little brothers, and as soon as they got away from their captors they ran their asses off to get back to the Nordics. The whole NB8 Initiative (Nordic Baltic 8 Initiative, you can google it) was formed very rapidly to speed up their ascension to EU and NATO. Even Sweden, who was principally "neutral" entered the mutual security agreements. Banking guarantees were given to help their transition to market economy. Technological exchange programs were set up. The Balts could study in Scandinavia with EU-like privilege long before they became EU members. If you absolutely have to refer to them as anything other than Balts, call them East Scandinavians.
@@andersjjensen east scandinavians and the whole thing with scandis post 1500 might hold some true when talking about estonians, but with Lithuania and Latvia - its just plain wrong, we have a different language, which is actually among oldest live ones, we faught both swedes, mongols and moscovites. Like perun mentioned here - grand dutchy of Lithuania and later Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth was a european powerhouse of the time (it included parts of latvia, but nor estonia). Anyway, thanks for the support, but we (lithunian here) arent scandinavian, not even a bit.
@@martynaskrivaitis1961 (The vast majority of modern day) Latvia was under Swedish rule from 1629 to 1721. But looking things over, yeah, the Lithuanian governance ties with the Nordics ended after the settlement period in the 800-1200s.
I AM from Poland and i call this sentence pure Bullshit. No one in Poland will celebrate that there is war. No one more than Poland know what war is and how IT looks.
As an Estonian soldier, I am genuinely impressed by your summary. There is some information that can be considered incorrect and outdated, but for a person, who hasn't served in our country's military - I am simply surprised you managed to collect and summarise it quite as neatly as you did.
I had the pleasure of meeting some Estonian NCOs and officers in my home state for training. They were warm, professional, and some of the most professional soldiers I have ever met. I hope to visit in turn one day. They were a credit to their nation and people. Elagu NATO, elagu Eesti
We're with you guys there, in the Baltics, as you know,( 'we ' being Nato) and as a Canadian our guys in Latvia , and proud are there helping to hold the line . nd our country could /should be doing (a lot ) more, particularly to spend/reach the 2% mark though I understand assurances have been given or privately ,to meet that, I hope thats the case . in any case glad our guys are there ,and thank you for your service sir ..from, across the pond among your transatlantic allies ,, Respect
@@brokenpotato438 As much as I'd like to correct the mistakes - I am not willing to make information that isn't meant to be publicly accessible to be publicly accessible. For general knowledge, Perun summed it up quite nicely.
'Permanently stationed' brigades mean, that we bring our families with us and build homes. So if the bear stumbles over the tripwire, be assured, we are all in. Love from Berlin!
The central Estonia, where NATO troops usually hang out, is a beautiful place. Since it is far from major cities, the housing is dirt cheap even by our standards, which you may find refreshing, coming from Berlin :)
Gruessen aus Tschechien, thanks for confirming that! My Czech acquaintances keep calling Scholz names because he's reluctant to send the Taurus missiles, but I always point to the good work Germany does in Lithuania 😊
Trust me. The chancellors hesitance will be remembered. Indecision does not bode well with the germans. It is weakness, Putin will view it as such as will we. He will not be chancellor for another term. We embarassed ourselves not taking the warnings seriously in the beginning. Then we committed alot of our own equipment after too much time had passed and now we are indecisive. It is infuriating. If it were up to me things would be different, sadly it isnt up to me. @@martavdz4972
@@martavdz4972 Taurus Missiles are our most hight tech piece of equipment. We would endanger other parts of our lackluster networking infrastructure, if I understood that correctly. Its our perogative to protect that. Without us, Vlad would be a lot closer to his goals. ATM we are the largest contributor (active, all time it's still the US). I feel the constant name calling a bit childish, considering the realities of who is helping and who is capable of not only continuing to help but even ramp up that help cinsiderably.... and who is not.
@@heinzkabofke6791 Being German myself I find the way Scholz drags his feet appalling. Btw. your argument against the delivery of Taurus to Ukraine has been proven wrong by the Luftwaffe leaks. In % of GDP the German contribution to arming Ukraine is tiny and pales compared to the Baltic States. And finally, without German gas contracts for more than a decade Putin would not have had the money to attack Ukraine. So, instead of defending the inadequate German response to Russia's aggression write to the chancellery and convince them to support NATO membership for Ukraine.
As a Ukrainian, I always will be thankful for the unconditional support from countries like Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Don't get me wrong I'm also deeply thankful to the countries like US and Poland, but at some point, there were (and currently are) pretty painful caveats, like blocking our border or holding the military funding (which is currently crucial for us). Seeing this truthful and unconditional helping hand from those countries restores my faith in people. Thank you❤
Meh, that's just us Lithuanians trying to reestablish the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and incorporate Ukraine back into our territory :) See en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Duchy_of_Lithuania#/media/File:Grand_Duchy_of_Lithuania_1430.png
@@TestTest12332Ok if you genuinely want to claim that that’s what we’re doing you haven’t seen a map in a while and btw you’re definitely not a lithuanian🤣🤣🤣🤣 come on say something in lithuanian I f**king dare you asile pasakyk ka nors davai as laukiu lopeta tu ble🤣🤣🤣
@@MikeJames-kt5dwWho are you talking about mister… James? Are you english? American? Mike James is the fakest fu**ing name I’ve ever heard in my life🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
the Lord of The Rings movie was so accurate. at the beginning it says "but there were some who resisted" . those wore the noble people of Europe, Baltic states, Polands, Finlands, those who were aware of the evil that comes from the Mordor
Interesting comparison, Ukraine might be Gondor and Poland, Finland and the Baltics are sort of Rohan. Except that... now I remembered Tolkien didn't like direct allegories, so, sorry, Mr. Tolkien.
@@martavdz4972 bro Rohan fits so well 😂 check out the Lithuanian national symbol since the middle ages, search “Lithuania Vytis” :D these guys are literally modern real life rohan!
As a Lithuanian, who has been plugging your channel for my geopolitics-interested friends for months now, i felt that Christmas arrived early when i saw this video ❤❤❤
Id say Latvia didnt get covered enough here, so i'll leave this here. Latvia in coop. with Finland is manufacturing Patria 6x6 inhouse (iirc, also have a purchase order from the EST mil), as well standardizing cybersecurtity, alongside drone warfare - Latvia has a "Edge autonomy" factory based in its central region, creating military grade drones in close cooperation with the Latvian military. An all terrain vehicle called the Fox is also being protyped, and would resamble a modern day ww2 jeep (though obv way more powerful as well as meant for the specific countrys terrain), that would be configurable for many purposes, mostly logistical ones. Alongside that, we have recently aquired new Blackhawks meant for S&R, but do signify an urge to modernize and expand air capabilities. Alongside them, we have recently manufactured and implemented trainer aircraft planes, meant to train and educate future pilots, so id imagine fighter jets or a combat aimed airforce is possible. As for conscription, it has been quite slow and is currently not mandatory, though it will be in the coming years. What isnt mentioned in the video, i feel, is that the military has both a military reserve as well as a substantive amount national guardsman, that are closely integrated with the standing army and have often served over seas (this is true for both EST and LT). Whereas LT and EST have gone the route of great consriptive power (EST) and a large land army (LIT), LV has been drawn to the MIC, working on also establishing a munitions, MRE and vehicle manufacturing plants. If you ask me, as a Latvian national, Latvia should increase conscription as well as focus on more IFVs, such as CV90 or Bradlys. The current force of CVRTs (~200), Patrias (50+) and M109 howitzers (50) is a substantial force, although mostly meant, in my estimation, for an educational purpose, to create a substantive base of service members trained in mechanized warfare and vehicle maintanance, so that they could fulfill the role of instructors for future crews working on more modern equipment. Note, the LV mil had trucks and a fee humvees when Ukraine was attacked in 2014. In the span of 10 years the military is almost unrecognizable - progressivly more modern, well respected and trusted by the population and useful in its own countrys defence. LV is also building a second major NATO base in its eastern region, and, as far as i understand, LV will be home to two of the biggest military bases in the region, though i might be wrong on this one. All of this is what ive gathered by following news about my military for the past 6 years. Hope its an interesting read.
Bro I remember when Russia opened its invasion there was this video on how the Latvian army had gotten so many recruits overnight they struggle being able to process them. But I was blown away by the women and how much they wanted to defend Latvia alongside their brothers and fathers
@@X_irtz im 22 and just about outside of the conscription cut off (if youre born before 2004, then conscription does not apply to you). That said, i have been looking to join the nat. guard. Just cant, due to working full time and being in university and being way out of shape (am a fat fuck rn). If anything, id like to get into drone manufacturing.
6 месяцев назад
@@socomply5963 That was not army, that was "Zemessardze" - Land Guard. A voulunteer force attached to the army.
I was waiting for a video about drone developments in Ukraine, this video about us, our brothers and sisters was an unexpected surprise. Cheers from Lithuania! ✌️🇱🇹🇺🇦
I have been dying for a Baltic analysis video from Perun. And what we got was an analysis including NATO and their unique position in it - just masterful! Thank you, Perun. A good rule of thumb I and many of my American brethren have learned after Putin's brutal and stupid invasion of Ukraine is...listen to the Baltics!!! Listen well, and listen early!
Exactly, been following them for more than 20 years and they're like Hercule Poirot, I can't sometimes believe it myself: They have this annoying habit of being right. Good sense of reality combined with vision and values.
PALDIES! Every detail of the Latvian heritage denied during the span of my life, is a precious stone. My grandparents and infant father left Riga in 1937. I'm compelled to write about our odyssey, and currently working on citizenship. PERUN, much GRATITUDE for the detail of truth in your presentations, sharing your wealth of knowledge!
I was in Tallinn and Riga this past December for a vacation(I know, the Baltics in winter…great choice!). The amount of people who remember what Russia is capable of was a bit surprising. There were many nights when Ross was at a pub and having conversations with people and like all good pub conversations things became political. The Estonians and lot that I met had some pretty strong opinions about Russia.
It's almost "Israel and the memories of holocaust" level. Most people there had an ancestor killed or tortured by USSR. Women were sent across freezing Siberia in light evening dresses, just as they came from a ballroom dance, just because their fathers were grammar school teachers. As Russia hasn't turned its course 180 degrees like Germany has, it's hard to forgive and forget. My country was occupied by Austria, but Austria is a nice neighbour now, so we've made our peace with it. Russia is making that impossible.
I had no idea that Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania contributed to NATO so much. Thank you for raising awareness of that. Your channel and William Spaniel have done fantastic work helping me to understand the greater mechanisms at work. Thank you for that.
The Baltic states all know from experience what "Russki Mir" means. Russia and Russia's very different (but all surprisingly similar) leaders, have an unenviable record of never keeping their word, or sticking to ANY treaties they've willingly signed. They KNOW just how vulnerable any of Europe is without NATO, they don't need convincing, they've been there and done that. It behooves all in the free West to learn from their experience and advice. Russia MUST be defeated in Ukraine or the whole of western democracy will fall to Putin's agression. And they must be defeated entirely, so that there is no chance of them coming back again in a few years.
It's not looking likely Russia will be defeated. They'll probably keep the lands they've taken since 2014. Regarding the Baltics I don't see any heavy response should Russia challenge article 5. Maybe Baltics, NATO and with EU can work out some security arrangements that can secure the region.
If the Baltic states, especially Estonia, were invaded... I have little doubt that Finland would go to war, NATO or not. Some of the politicians would definitely be hesitant, but I don't think the people would be. And the people already overran the politicians on the NATO question early 2022. The politicians could do nothing but rapidly follow the will of the people.
Considering that pretty much every Russian occupation of Estonia has been a prelude to invasion to Finland, there is every reason for Finns trying to prevent that from happening ever again.
"Hey, Colonel Einseln, if you're feeling bored in retirement, maybe take up Warhammer. I'm sure you could build a great army." "Build an army, you say..."
I'm actually in the middle of planning a trip to the Baltic states - I've been booking accomodation this weekend. Countries like the Baltic states seem so exotic to us Aussies. All that history and beautiful old towns - heaven on earth.
In Latvia we have a pub called the Aussie Pub (Aussie backpackers pub), witch i frequent after school, the staff is amazing, but they lost their supplier for VB tho :c I highly suggest to ad that place as a place to visit. Also we have an Armory Bar, where you can drink beer and mess around with deactivated weapons :)
@@dundun8640 VB is awful stuff. We have much better beer than that! That's maybe our cheapest beer. I actually lived very close to the Melbourne Latvian House. Look it up on Google - it's small but I have been to their "Cafe Riga" and it was very tasty.
As an American, I feel NATO is essential to ensuring US national defense and the maintenance of the International rules based system that underpins American economic security. Thank you for this content. I understand the importance of collective security and having allies such as Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. I support Ukraine 🇺🇦 in its war to defend itself against Putin.
Spent a night on a Roof top with Lithuanian Soldiers in Al Hillah Iraq in 2003. They must have thought us American Soldiers were short. They had awesome equipment M16A1, M1911 pistols. Straight outta Nam.
2003 was still the infacy of the Lithuanian military. That equipement is not surprising, it was probably old US stock hand-me-down's. It wouldn't surprise me if it saw action is vietnam.
Looking at the comments section, putting "Baltic" in a YT video title seems to be a little bit like shining the Bat-Signal into the night sky. You just summoned them all... 😁 🇬🇧❤🇱🇹🇱🇻🇪🇪
The Baltics are proud online patriots. I once did a youth summer camp with a bunch, they are lovely company. Even the Baltorussians among them, I hope they didn't turn traitors. Shoutout to Eesti Vabariik, you're the coolest - among all them cool people.
@@Enyavar1There are some traitors, but not all of them, not by a long shot. Even the Russian-speaking party in Latvia is fairly supportive of the security measures. I know some Russian-speaking Latvians in Riga and they´re great, interested in other cultures, they helped me make it though my first winter. On the whole, what´s little known in the world, is that the Russian-speaking minority in the Baltics is incredibly diverse. From Georgians to Siberians, from blue-collar workers to members of parliament, spanning every political view imaginable. Some miss the USSR, some love the EU. My Russian-Latvian friend (well, Polish-Latvian-Armenian-Siberian, really) used to say "there´s no such thing as a Russian-Latvian worldview. Each Russian-speaking Latvian has a different opinion".
I have never been happier for a Perun video in my life. My final project for one of my classes is on Russian aggression in the Baltics. This is going to help me so much.
6 месяцев назад
Small correction: the quote "Lithuania is among those countries that has always tried to convince the Alliance about the Russian threat" should be attributed to Arvydas Anušauskas (the Minister of Defense), Michael Miklaucic was the interviewer for the interview this is from.
In 2019 I was apart of an American armor unit in Poland, placed uncomfortably close to the Suwalki corridor. I got to train with the soldiers of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia several times, and I have to say I was personally impressed. Very motivated, very driven, and they were like sponges. They wanted to know everything we did and why we did it. Post crimea, and pre special military operation, I was only 21-22 at the time and was kind of uncomfortable at how much/ why they wanted to know everything. I didn’t understand their reasoning. I do now.
It's nice seeing smaller nations get their fair share of representation. Would love to see one about Belgium, the Netherlands, Austria, Czech Republic, Norway, et cetera. Nations with niche specialties in NATO due to their smaller size.
Recently there was a flight and unfortunately an engine gave way. The plane was in trouble. It didn't have the power to fly with such a heavy load. The captain sprang into action ordering all cargo be jettisoned. Much to his despair the plane was still six hundred pounds too heavy. So the captain went on the intercom and said "My fellow passengers our plane has blown an engine and we are too heavy to fly. We've jettisoned all unnecessary weight but unfortunately we are still six hundred pounds too heavy. We are going to ask for three brave souls to sacrifice themselves so the rest of us may live." A frenchman stood up and bellowed "Viva la France!" before bravely jumping. An Englishman stood up and said "God save the King" before sacrificing himself. A Ukrainian stood up and shouted "Slava Ukraini!" before throwing a russian out of the plane.
As a Lithuanian I can say foreigners often tend to make a lot of mistakes when talking about my country, but Perun did a great job, I can't find any mistakes, so thank you for taking care to be absolutely accurate. I just would like to add that moscovia can employ hybrid war tactics and send small unmarked insurgency forces to the eastern ethnic Russian parts of our states (like in Donbas and Crimea), so that the Article 5 is not invoked. Belarus dictator has already tried flooding LT, PL and LV with people transported from the Middle East and Africa.
As a Finn, at least within my social circle, people in Finland seem to be very willing to send direct military aid to the baltics in the case of Attack. Especially Estonia is viewed as sort of a "little brother" state. And at minimum a great friend. We want to defend them from any bullies.
This is the best video you've done because it is so informative about the importance of alliances and how deterrence is so critical to stability. It explains the importance of NATO in a way that hopefully will enlighten the members who live in safe neighborhoods, the ones who forget that world order (continued peace) exists because of the strong deterrence NATO provides.
Lithuania will get HIMARS, Caesars, 500 JLTV's, more IFV's, more Javelins, Stingers, conscription will be at 7k a year from 4,2k a year max. Division will be created. We need a lot of funding for everything. We're trying to use every penny as efficiently as possible.
Thankyou once again, Perun. Logical articulation of enlightening and memorable key points with a minimum of waffle. I looked at the populations of the Baltic states, Finland and Sweden and compared them to that of Australia and some of our cities: I was profoundly shocked. I had not realised how tiny their population sizes were in comparison. I continue to keep all in the region in my prayers. 🙏
In Nordic countries Denmark, Finland , Norway and Sweden also Baltic Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania there are more people than in Australia and in very much smaller area 😂
@@karilang9377 I apologise, I was using the population numbers listed in Wikipedia. Certainly Australia has a very large area that has a very low population density, and it is my impression that our technology sector is not as advanced as some in Europe.
This video, with it's history lesson, is again a reminder of why I find it frustrating that Western/English nations get very shy (certainly until recently) to critique and distrust the Kremlin. The immediate guilt of colonialism and avoidance of hearing the accusation of Russophobic. The irony is that there is ignorance in not listening to the former Kremlin controlled Soviet nations. They have the collective experience of misery, lack of freedom and brutalisation from Moscow. I am sure that many people from the Baltics, Ukraine, Poland, Czech Republic etc can feel frustrated at not being listened to by England, France, Germany and the USA, but also have the right to say "we told you so"
thank you very much for talking about the baltics!! maybe videos on smaller countries aren't going to do as well but imo especially these countries need more attention on them because of the position they're in and i am glad you are making this video
Mr Perun, I'm a bit surprised that you didn't talk more on Poland's influence in shaping the defence of Baltics because I believe it's as important in the south as Finland's in the north.
Poland was mentioned multiple times, and Finland got the spotlight due to its recent accension to nato and its shared sea with Estonia. Also Finland's choices during the war would be more complicated since we actually share a border with Russia so we might be expected to go on the offensive, while Polish offensive would likely first be a defensive one.
@@mariusrutkausPoland’s military strength and resolve is what makes a southern invasion the least palatable of Russia’s choices. It’s not a threat we can ignore, but it’s the least likely scenario. (At least that’s what Perun argues and he makes a strong argument.)
As far as I remember, Poland retains its strongest cultural ties to Lithuania, and they in turn are the connector to Latvia+Estonia. I would think that at least one nation will be able to rely on Polish outrage if they are invaded, just like Estonia can rely on Finnish assistance. These shared bonds are what makes the Baltic countries so lovely. It is time for Kaliningrad to be liberated and become part of the club again - at a Baltic Sea of friendship. But after 80 years of occupation, that will be hard to achieve in friendship. 😞
Given how well you cover niche subjects I know something about, I can only assume your coverage of subjects that I'm not versed in are as high quality 👍
I broadly had a picture of Latvian defense concerns, but this Perun video pulled it together, filled in the details, and really made the whole topic concrete. I feel like I understand better the challenges Latvia (and Estonia and Lithuania) faces.
Thank you so much for explaining the issue with calling baltics former soviet.... Luckily we dont see it much any more, but sometimes it is still in the headlines and it is really annoyng.
As Dane living in Latvia, reading official notice to civilian population like: "all publications of surrender are misinformation by the enemy" (wording might be off, meaning is not), it puts things somewhat into perspective. Rather total population annihilation than another occupation. You start then to understand terms like "Total Defence" does not mean the same in Latvian, as it does in Danish.
Yea, it is very accurate. It reminded me of a quote a soldier told my class (what I remember anyway): If our government ever orders us to surrender, we are to continue fighting. After all, we do not need a repeat of 1939 soviet occupation.
When I was a young lad, a family friend had a foreign exchange student born in Latvia. As an elementary-grade US child, I had not even heard of that country, then I wrote it off as another portion of the U.S.S.R. This was right before the soviet bloc collapsed. Then, it was not big news when the Baltic states joined NATO. And last, no one, ever, informed my ignorant @-- that the Baltic states joined the coalition in the Middle East with such total commitment and personnel losses until, and this truly angers me, an Australian I listen to every Sunday when I awake, puts these facts out there like we, of all countries, should f-in know! That is a failure in our country, our schools, and me. I can't go back and change anything, but I can make sure every American I know understands the sacrifices of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania after the 9/11. And, if Putin is stupid enough to rush even a centimeter of Baltic territory, I will be campaigning for a full Article 5 response with no restrictions.
Article 5 is an obligation, not an option. When a member state's sovereign territory in Europe or North America is violated, that state invokes Article 5 and ALL the other NATO member states MUST respond by entering a state of war against the aggressor. There is also the option of Article 4, where a member state calls for support (reloads, refueling, etc.), but does not invoke the obligation of active combat against the aggressor.
The only problem is getting NATO countries to act on Article 5 because it requires unanimous approval from all members. This would include countries that might want to blackmail for that approval (either diplomatic, monetary or defense concessions). Then there are countries like Hungary who are sympathetic/energy dependent to Russia so would not vote in favor. The NATO alliance need to get rid of that unanimous clause and replace it with majority vote ASAP.
2 things needed: getting rid of the unanimous clause AND introducing a clause of suspending or even kiking out a member that actively works to undermine the alliance. WTAF Hungary is still doing in NATO? if they want to stand tall and spend the necessary standalonearmy they are welcome to do so. Like the membership in EU what they are doing is blackmail on behalf of putler.
Actually it's up to each member to uphold their commitment. There's no vote. Nobody could block aid from another. If a nation is attacked and invokes article 5.
we all saw the limitations of the alliance as it is now. Like Usa politics where an orange clown can wreak havoc onto the superpower foreing policy, Nato and EU felt what a small minority can do. Slovakia and Hungary can support themselves even agains some mild remedy measures. @@First-Last_name
The future permanent placement of a Combat Brigade in Lithuania is, beside heavy arms delivery for Ukraine, the most important decision Olaf Scholz did to change Germanies Defence policy since 2022.
Obligatory "I am Estonian and I appreciate this video" comment. But yea Bigup! For real! Baltic Nations' independence is completely reliant on the support of others and communicating and informing the world about our unique and untouched nature loving nations is the biggest defence boost there is! Also, Love your videos. It's the only media I anticipate.
It was really good to see my other home represented 🇱🇹 and to hear the key facts well explained. Most Balts will say they’ve been engaged nationally in a gray war with Putin’s Russia for more than a decade.
Yeah, I´m Czech, lived in Latvia in 2009-2011 and I could feel the subtle Russian pressure even then. People saying their Russian-speaking colleagues went to Russia and were shown all the beautifully restored cities and told the cities are worse in Latvia; rumours of Russia forcing itself into Latvian municipalities´ business, the constant fear Russia would declare the local minorities oppressed, etc. etc. It was like living in a town that has a manipulative psychopath living in the suburbs. If it was a bit psychologically demanding even for me, I can´t imagine what it was like for the locals.
I spent a lot of time in Lithuania between 2000 and 2002, back then the people running the hostel I stayed at in Vilnius would organise trips to the Belarussian border. You could cross over, and so long as you had your passport with you, any Belarussian guards would just simply send you back from where you came. I imagine now it is all fenced with guard dogs and armed patrols and I've heard that soon all the Baltic states will be fortifying their borders with ditches and tank traps. I visited again during the summer of 2017 coincidentally during Russia's Zapad 17 exercises just over the border. It looked like huge changes in the living standards and lifestyle of the people had happened in the ensuing time. The people I know would fight like hell to avoid being dragged back into the past and ending up as another Belarus.
Absolutely, I´ve been studying the Baltics since 2002 and the progress they´ve made is incredible. Might be the fastest societal, economic, architectonic, organizational and anti-corruption progress any region has made in history.
I'm embarrassed that I didn't know about the Baltic militaries' involvement in the Middle East. Perhaps its something that the voting public needs to be reminded of more often, so it's kept in mind if the worst should happen in the region.
