First troops from German brigade to arrive in Lithuania in April
According to the Ministry of National Defence, soldiers arriving from Germany in Lithuania will be accommodated in Vilnius. They will be responsible for planning the transfer of the German brigade to Lithuania and for coordinating the requirements set for military infrastructure.
The German command element that will grow in numbers by the end of the year and will also become responsible for assistance in transferring German soldiers to serve in Lithuania.
Once the military infrastructure is completed in the Rūdninkai training area, the German brigade will be stationed in Šalčininkai district, southern Lithuania. Approximately 80% of the German brigade will serve in this training area, while the rest will serve in Rukla, central Lithuania.
Germany committed to deploy a brigade-sized unit in Lithuania in the summer of 2022, amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The commitment was made in a communique signed between German Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda. The defence ministers signed a roadmap for the deployment of the brigade in December 2023. Germany will send the 122nd Armoured Infantry Battalion from Bavaria and the 203rd Tank Battalion from North Rhine-Westphalia.
A total of 5,000 German troops and civilians are planned to be deployed in Lithuania. The majority of the brigade should be moved by 2026. German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius had said that the brigade would reach full operational capacity in 2027.