Discourse on MWI Podcast: Ensuring the Defense of NATO in the Baltic Region
In a recent episode of the MWI Podcast, John Amble was joined by Mark Cancian, a retired Marine officer and senior adviser with the International Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The discussion focused on defense and deterrence strategies for the Baltic States, a region that faces a direct and real threat from Russian military aggression due to its small size, proximity to Russia, and position on NATO's northeastern flank.
Cancian, the author of the recently published report titled "Repel, Don't Expel: Strengthening NATO's Defense and Deterrence in the Baltic States," outlined a strategy for strengthening defense and deterrence in the region. This strategy emphasizes enhancing immediate, credible local defense capabilities to prevent rapid Russian advances and improving rapid reinforcement and interoperability among NATO forces.
The key measures aligned with this concept include improving local defense forces in the Baltics, pre-positioning materiel and infrastructure, enhancing rapid reinforcement and interoperability, building credible deterrence through visible commitments and readiness, and countering potential Russian hybrid tactics.
Improving local defense forces in the Baltics involves investing heavily in defense to build capable, ready forces that can delay or disrupt a Russian offensive immediately upon attack. Pre-positioning materiel and infrastructure ensures that weaponry, ammunition, and supplies are stored within the Baltics and nearby friendly countries, like Finland and Poland, to facilitate quick resupply and prolonged defense.
Enhancing rapid reinforcement and interoperability involves developing common systems like optionally manned launchers and cloud-based coordination platforms to ensure that NATO reinforcements can move in swiftly and operate seamlessly with Baltic forces. Building credible deterrence through visible commitments and readiness involves demonstrating through troop presence, investments, and integrated defense planning that Article V protection is robust and that any attack on the Baltics will prompt a credible, collective response.
Countering potential Russian hybrid tactics includes preparing to overcome attempts at isolation, infiltration, and information warfare, which Russia may use to weaken Baltic defense prior to or during any attack.
Collectively, these steps embody the "repel, don't expel" strategy by focusing on immediate, local defense capacity to repel an attack before it requires costly counteroffensives to expel occupying forces. This preserves Baltic sovereignty and deters Russian aggression by raising the costs and complexity of any attack.
Listeners are encouraged to subscribe to the MWI Podcast for future episodes. If you're already enjoying the podcast, please take a moment to give it a rating or leave a review. The MWI Podcast can be listened to in full below. The podcast is produced with the image credit: Spc. Charles Leitner, US Army.
References:
- [Link to reference 1]
- [Link to reference 2]
- [Link to reference 3]
- [Link to reference 4]
National security and defense are critical concerns in the politics of war-and-conflicts, as evidenced by discussions focusing on defense and deterrence strategies for the Baltic States. Mark Cancian, a retired Marine officer, proposed a strategy called "Repel, Don't Expel" to strengthen defense in this region, which centers on enhancing immediate, local defense capabilities and improving rapid reinforcement among NATO forces. This strategy involves countering potential Russian hybrid tactics, building credible deterrence through visible commitments and readiness, and pre-positioning materiel and infrastructure, among other measures.
