‘No way back to business as usual’: The Baltic nations seek to counter Russia’s threat

On the border with Russia on the edge of Nato’s eastern flank, the people of Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia are nervously watching events in Ukraine while the leaders of each nation call for support from the international community. Bel Trew reports from Vilnius and the ‘Suwalki gap’

Mindaugas Lietuvninkas joined the Ukrainian foreign legion to fight Russia’s forces after defending the Suwalki gap in Lithuania, nicknamed Nato’s weakest point (Bel Trew)

The Lithuanian father-of-five was the only member of the foreign legion he met in Ukraine to arrive with their own body armour, which came in handy when, soon after they crossed the border, Russian missiles rained down on their training base.

But Mindaugas Lietuvninkas says he knew what he was getting into as a former Soviet Union infantry captain, ex-member of one of Lithuania’s most prestigious artillery brigades and later volunteer rifleman commander guarding the “Suwalki gap”, a strip of land in south Lithuania nicknamed Nato’s weakest link against Moscow.

His military career very much tells the fraught story of Russia and Eastern Europe – spanning from Soviet occupation to independence and now to Ukraine where he says a battle the West cannot ignore is unfolding. He says this background means he is not only best prepared for the fight but he understands how high the stakes are.