A Nato meeting on providing support for Ukraine began in Brussels with defence ministers set to agree on stronger deployments on the military alliance's eastern borders to head off any future Russian aggression.
Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said the allies would take decisions on the scale of their posture for the longer term “to ensure that we can defend every inch of allied territory".
The war by the Kremlin in Ukraine since February has led the allies to rethink strategies and to agree that Nato forces should be present in greater numbers on that flank. They have already beefed up the deployment of troops and material and want to guarantee a long-term presence.
In response to the invasion, Nato has increased to 40,000 the number of troops under its direct command, mainly on the eastern flank.
Germany has already announced its plans to strengthen its engagement in Lithuania, while France wants to increase its presence in Romania, where it plans to send 1,000 troops, reinforced by Leclerc tanks, by the end of the year.
Artis Pabriks, the Latvian defence minister, said the military alliance should position larger armed forces and material in the Baltic states.
