The Baltics: should Britain be rushing to their defence?

[whitecity]

Recent articles on the BBC website indicate fears in the Baltics about the (renewed) threat from Russia next door.

Moscow originally said it was intervening in Crimea because of concern over the ill-treatment of Russians there - they make up more than half the population. So could the same happen in other parts of the former Soviet Union?

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26713975

Crimea crisis sharpens Latvia ethnic tensions
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-26720549

Lithuania pleads for US gas exports to counter Russia
http://www.bbc.com/news/business-26724081

Poland and Baltics feel heat from Crimea
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26526053


Should Britain be doing more to defend the territory and interests of the Baltics? Or, should Britain leave bad alone?

Discuss.

 

[chrisg46]

If they are NATO members, then really yes we should, from a moral point of view.

 

[vampireuk]

 

[ivan_the_tolerable]

If they are NATO members, then really yes we should, from a moral point of view.

Wouldn't we be bound by the terms of the North Atlantic treaty to come to the defence of a fellow member state anyway in the event of invasion/ aggressive military action along with the other members?

 

[ECE-Tech]

After the recent deployments, does the britsh army have enough extreme-cold-weather kit to deploy a sizeable force there ?
I´ve heard it can be positively baltic in those locations.

 

[I.A. Dada]

If NATO means anything at all, or is worth anything at all, every NATO member has to be protected from aggression.

Putin is a predator but not a loony - he'll size up the herd and pick off the weak, the lame and the stragglers. He won't pick a fight with the alpha males. There's nothing in it for him. The only time he might be really dangerous is if his political survival depended on making a rash decision.

 

[SOI]

Not just NO! But Hell NO!

 

[4(T)]

After the recent deployments, does the britsh army have enough extreme-cold-weather kit to deploy a sizeable force there ?
I´ve heard it can be positively baltic in those locations.

I'm doing a house move right now. Just found my DMS boots, puttees and a mint chinese fighting suit. I'll be ok.

 

[PaulinBont]

Yes! They are NATO members,they also helped us out in Afghanistan so we have a moral duty

 

[I.A. Dada]

Not just NO! But Hell NO!

I sympathise to an extent with that point of view. But the world is too small for isolationism - which is what this would amount to. Better to face the Russians down now and stand by the Baltic states; or sell them some nukes.

 

[I.A. Dada]

I'm doing a house move right now. Just found my DMS boots, puttees and a mint chinese fighting suit. I'll be ok.

Ahh, some poor sods will be doing 2 week field exercises in the Baltic states in winter, digging into rock hard ground for 24 hours at a time and shivering on stag in minus horrible degrees. I feel a substantial gloat coming on........

 

[BuckFelize]

Dear Mr Putin,

I can understand your unease at having the EU (and all that it represents) on your doorstep. I can understand it because I have equal unease about having several hundred thousand Russians on mine... literally. I understand that root vegetables don't pick themselves, but is there an agenda? I think we should be told.

Regards, BF
King's Lynn

 

[chrisg46]

Ok, so its very US-centric as a video but a valid message - if nothing in life is worth dying for, what's the point of living? I imagine there is a better way of saying that, but i know what i mean anyway

 

[uncle_vanya]

Absolutely not. Mr Dave and Mr Willy Vague are babbling idiots in thinking that Old Blighty should be "volunteering" our redcoats and muskets for further deployments to Foreign Climes yet again. Tw*TS (spelled with an "a")!

 

[mso]

Ok, so its very US-centric as a video but a valid message - if nothing in life is worth dying for, what's the point of living? I imagine there is a better way of saying that, but i know what i mean anyway

It's only US centric because we simply no longer have politicians with the convictions or stones of Ronald Reagan.

 

[SOI]

I sympathise to an extent with that point of view. But the world is too small for isolationism - which is what this would amount to. Better to face the Russians down now and stand by the Baltic states; or sell them some nukes.

Why 'face the Russians down now'?

Where's our dog in this fight?

Do I care if Vlad has a bit of a beef with his former States? Nope.
The Baltic States are far away countries of which I know little and care even less.
They wan't to be independent grown ups? Well, time they started acting like it and spent some Wonga on defence.

 

[mso]

The Baltic States are far away countries of which I know little and care even less.

The only thing we learn from history is that we don't learn from history...

 

[BuckFelize]

Using the 'ethnic percentage' argument as a model for invasion, I expect the Pakistani Navy to commence bombarding Folkstone any moment now (ship and ammunition provided by the UK of course). Mr Putin needs to understand that every fecker now lives in every other fecker's country, so his retro views are somewhat outdated. I don't know why he simply doesn't move to London and submerge himself under several layers of Romanian hookers.

 

[I.A. Dada]

Why 'face the Russians down now'?

Where's our dog in this fight?

Do I care if Vlad has a bit of a beef with his former States? Nope.
The Baltic States are far away countries of which I know little and care even less.
They wan't to be independent grown ups? Well, time they started acting like it and spent some Wonga on defence.

Standing up to Putin now is the kind of firm action - assertive rather than aggressive - that might prevent a lot of future grief. A lesson learned (or perhaps not learned) from the 1930s. The situation is similar.

Nobody is advocating a march on Moscow, or the instillation of 55,000 British troops in the Baltics. Just a firm commitment backed up by some practical measures. It will be enough to keep the peace.

You're absolutely right that the Baltic states should dig deep into their own pockets and increase their defence budgets. In doing so they should be strongly encouraged to buy British arms exports. Cough...

 

[Gary Cooper]

If they are NATO members, then really yes we should, from a moral point of view.

If they're the UK's NATO allies it goes a bit further than morality.

After the recent deployments, does the britsh army have enough extreme-cold-weather kit to deploy a sizeable force there ?
I´ve heard it can be positively baltic in those locations.

Extreme-cold-weather kit won't be needed. The war will be well over before winter.

Not just NO! But Hell NO!

The Baltic states are all NATO members. The UK is treaty-bound to leap to their defence. The Freedom of Small Nations etc

Standing up to Putin now is the kind of firm action - assertive rather than aggressive - that might prevent a lot of future grief. A lesson learned (or perhaps not learned) from the 1930s. The situation is similar.

Nobody is advocating a march on Moscow, or the instillation of 55,000 British troops in the Baltics. Just a firm commitment backed up by some practical measures. It will be enough to keep the peace. ...

The problem with your analogy is that the last time this happened Britain ended up marching on a foreign capital with far more than 55,000 troops.

You're absolutely right that the Baltic states should dig deep into their own pockets and increase their defence budgets...

I think the Yanks are saying the same about the rest of NATO