Military capabilities must be improved by reducing bureaucracy - Nauseda

VILNIUS - Active work is needed on the establishment of a "military Schengen" so that military forces can move freely across allied borders without bureaucratic obstacles, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda says.

"We need to work to implement the so-called military Schengen so that military capabilities can move across borders without any bureaucratic obstacles. I cannot say that this is the case right now, but the key thing is that we need NATO-level coordination for decisions to be made as quickly as possible," the president told reporters in Vilnius on Tuesday.

In his words, there are two possible paths, one of which is to create conditions in the event of a crisis for forces to be redeployed extremely quickly to the country where the crisis is occurring.

"Or simply to implement the so-called forward defense principle, where forces are actually deployed in countries that are vulnerable or closest to the borders with aggressive states," he explained.

"We are going down both paths, and Lithuania can be happy that our allies, both the United States and Germany, and finally all eFP (NATO enhanced Forward Presence battlegroup - BNS) countries, are paying a lot of attention to us, so we are on the right track," he added.

According to Nauseda, Lithuania wants military mobility to be implemented as soon as possible in legal, economic, and political terms.

"We can rely on the fact that (...) the next financial perspective provides for a very substantial amount of funding for EU connectivity and that funding for military mobility is increasing tenfold in practical terms. (...) Now the most important thing will be to apply for that money, use it, and, most importantly, successfully implement those financial resources," the Lithuanian president underlined.

On Tuesday, Nauseda opened a forum on military mobility and resilience. The event focuses on policy and funding directions in preparation for the next multiannual EU budget, as well as insights from the war in Ukraine.