Lithuania: President stresses continuous US troop presence

Lithuania is seeking continuous presence of US combat troops in the country, regardless of the outcome of the US presidential election, President Gitanas Nauseda stated, BNS reports. Speaking after visiting US troops at the Pabrade training area near Vilnius, Nauseda noted that the base would soon be able to accommodate about 1,000 US troops. At the same time, he stressed that the deployment of a German brigade in Lithuania would not diminish the importance of US military presence in the country. Also, he urged to accelerate the purchase of US weapons. Meanwhile, Dutch Defence Minister Ruben Brekelmans said that the Netherlands planned to deploy its long-range Patriot air defence system to Lithuania more frequently, BNS reported. NATO has agreed on a rotational air defence model for the Baltic region.