After his visit to Latvia from 2 to 4 May, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence François Bausch went to Lithuania on 4 and 5 May 2022 for a working visit together with the Chief of Staff of the Army, General Steve Thull. The purpose of this working visit was to hold talks with his counterpart, the Lithuanian Minister of National Defence, Dr Arvydas Anušauskas, and to meet the Luxembourg soldiers stationed in Lithuania.
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François Bausch and General Steve Thull during the visit of the enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroup in Lithuania
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Reception of François Bausch by Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Andrä, Commander of the NATO enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroup in Lithuania and Colonel Mindaugas Petkevičius, Commander of the Lithuanian Infantry Brigade "Iron Wolf”
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François Bausch and General Steve Thull during a briefing
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Reception of François Bausch by Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Andrä, Commander of the NATO enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroup in Lithuania and Colonel Mindaugas Petkevičius, Commander of the Lithuanian Infantry Brigade "Iron Wolf”
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Visit of the eFP military base
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François Bausch and General Steve Thull talking to the soldiers of the eFP
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François Bausch and General Steve Thull during the visit of the enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroup in Lithuania
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François Bausch and General Steve Thull during the visit of the enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroup in Lithuania
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François Bausch with Dr Arvydas Anušauskas, Minister of National Defence of Lithuania, during the welcoming ceremony
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François Bausch during the welcoming ceremony
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Welcoming ceremony
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Work meeting
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François Bausch with Dr Arvydas Anušauskas, Minister of National Defence of Lithuania, during a press conference
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François Bausch during the press conference
On the first day, the Luxembourg delegation visited the military base of NATO's enhanced Forward Presence (eFP) Battlegroup in Rukla, Lithuania, where members of the Luxembourg army, integrated into the eFP in a multinational logistics company under German command.
After a meeting with Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Andrä, Commander of the eFP in Lithuania, and Colonel Mindaugas Petkevičius, Commander of the Lithuanian Infantry Brigade "Iron Wolf", François Bausch met with the six members of the Luxembourg army stationed in Lithuania. "A big thank you for the services that our soldiers and all NATO troops are providing here. They are ensuring the security of the Alliance and the protection of the borders against the Russian aggressor on a daily basis".
On 5 May, on the last day of the working visit to Lithuania, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence François Bausch had a meeting with the Lithuanian Minister of National Defence, Dr Arvydas Anušauskas. Discussions focused on the eFP troops stationed in Lithuania, military cooperation with Luxembourg and NATO, but also on Lithuania's particular situation with its borders with Kaliningrad in the west and Belarus in the east, and the security situation in the Baltic States in view of the Russian war of aggression.
"The multinational troops here in Lithuania are doing their duty, because they are protecting not only Lithuania's borders, but also those of the European Union. And these borders are a red line for all aggressors on the other side. That is why Luxembourg has not hesitated to send troops from the very beginning, and has recently reinforced them. We thank Lithuania for its great efforts as a host nation and for the precious support it provides to our troops" said François Bausch at a joint press conference of the two Ministers of Defence, adding: "For me, support for Lithuania in the field of defence is of paramount importance, and that is why we continue to offer Lithuania cooperation and services, for example in the cyber and space fields."
Released by the Directorate of Defence