A Glimpse of Baltic States over the Russia-Ukraine War

Abstract

This article examines the 2022 Russia-Ukraine conflict and its implications for the Baltic states. In the wake of July 11, 2023, the NATO summit was held in Lithuania with the participation of U.S. President Joe Biden. The summit occurred amid tensions between Russia and Ukraine and provided an opportunity for the East European nations of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania to assert their positions on international platforms. Thus, the Baltic states serve as a transformed stage for the strategic alliance among the EU allies and NATO in opposition to Russia. Russia disclosed a list of unfriendly countries and territories, which includes the Baltic states. The war between Russia and Ukraine poses a security threat to the Baltic states, given their close geographical proximity and location as a junction between East and West. However, the Baltic states receive high-level military drills and special training for their nation-level armed forces as NATO member countries. Subsequently, the Russia-Ukraine conflict has multiple implications for the Baltic states. Thus, the paper argues that the Russia-Ukraine military escalation has strong geopolitical, economic, socio-cultural, and security disruptions over the Baltic states.