According to a media report, the once important Russian military force on the borders with the Baltic States and Finland has shrunk considerably. Only 6,000 of the 30,000 soldiers are stationed there. The reason is the protracted war of aggression against Ukraine.
Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, Russia has regularly withdrawn troops from bases on the borders with the Baltic States and Finland to make up for losses in Ukraine. This is reported by the magazine “Foreign Policy” on its website. The Russian threat to the neighboring NATO countries and the NATO candidate Finland is currently less frightening.
“The withdrawal we have witnessed from this region over the past seven months is very significant,” a defense official, who asked to remain anonymous, was quoted as saying. 80 percent of these Russian troops are said to have been transferred to Ukraine. Previously, it is said to have been the densest concentration of armed forces near NATO territory. This ground force position, which has existed for decades, has now “virtually disappeared”.
However, the official stressed that the strength of the Russian air forces in the region had not changed. Russia’s Northern Fleet – the crown jewel of Russian naval power stationed on the Kola Peninsula – has also remained relatively untouched. In addition to troops, Russia is also transferring other high-value military equipment, including anti-aircraft systems and missiles, from the region to Ukraine, the official said.
According to Foreign Policy, Lithuanian Defense Minister Arvydas Anusauskas said the reason for the withdrawal was that Moscow used these troops against Ukraine to “generate enough combat power for the first invasion in February”. Due to the heavy casualties, these would have had to be replaced and restored during the fighting.
According to Anusauskas, troops have also been withdrawn from the Kaliningrad region, the Russian exclave on the Baltic Sea. Before the war, about 12,000 soldiers were stationed in Kaliningrad, the report says. 18,000 men were stationed in western Russia near the Baltic States and Finland. Of these 30,000 soldiers, 6,000 remain, according to estimates by two European defense officials. “The Russian threat in the Baltics is not as great today as it was a year ago,” security expert Jim Townsend is quoted as saying in the report.
Most recently, Russia had to contend with massive personnel worries among its troops due to the protracted war of aggression and high losses against Ukraine. After numerous defeats on the front in eastern Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin therefore ordered partial mobilization. 300,000 reservists are now to be drafted into the Russian army.
