Baltic Sea

NATO has wrestled with how to defend its Baltic member states of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania ever since their accession to the Alliance in 2004. All three militarily weak countries sit uncomfortably close to NATO’s main adversary, Russia. Making...

As the European Union works to maintain a competitive edge economically against Beijing and Moscow, regional cooperation initiatives throughout Europe have taken center stage. The Three Seas Initiative (3SI) is one such promising example. 3SI launched in 2015 and...

The US administration under President Joe Biden has been looking to initiate a new round of negotiations with Russia on reducing non-strategic nuclear warheads (NSNW). However, Russia’s willingness to engage remains uncertain, and such negotiations have the potential to...

Autumn is for military exercises. In September two major exercises have occurred in relative close geographic proximity, one in Latvia and the other in western Russia and Belarus. Latvia’s annual large-scale exercise Namejs 2021 kicked off on August 30...

  This report is part of FPRI’s collaboration with Eastern Europe Studies Centre in Vilnius, Lithuania and can also be viewed here   Executive Summary  During the immediate post-Cold War period, the importance of Lithuania, along with other Central-Eastern...

In the context of the new transatlantic rapprochement initiated by the new US administration, this policy paper offers an overview of possibilities to reinforce and deepen the long-term strategic partnership between the US and the Baltic states. After four...

Estonia’s reputation as one of Europe’s most digitally advanced countries is best exemplified in its residents’ abilities to do almost everything online—from filing taxes, to conducting business, to even casting their ballots. Such digital achievements are also observed within...

The recently announced decision to increase the U.S. military presence in Europe by sending 500 additional troops to Germany in the coming months is the right move at the right time in the right place. This announcement implements President...

While COVID-19 has disrupted China's image in some European countries, the novel coronavirus pandemic has not undermined the perception of China as an economic powerhouse in Latvia. In a Europe-wide study mapping national public opinion on China in the...

Thirty years ago, the collapse of the Soviet Union opened the door for three Baltic states to step on the pathway to independence, democracy and prosperity. But the door did not open by itself. Restoration of independence was achieved,...