The Commander of NATO Allied Maritime Command (MARCOM), Vice Admiral Peter Hudson CBE, paid official visits to Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania last week as part of ongoing NATO efforts to assure Allies on the eastern borders of the Alliance of NATO’s solidarity and commitment to collective defence.
During the visits, Vice Admiral Hudson met with the Chief of Defence and Head of Navy in each country, visited ministers and officials at each respective Ministry of Defence, and gave speeches to key opinion leaders.
Speaking engagements were held at the Latvian Transatlantic Organisation and the Lithuanian Atlantic Treaty Organization, during which Vice Admiral delivered presentations about the maritime dimension of NATO following the NATO Summit in Wales.
Vice Admiral Hudson received comprehensive briefings on regional security and maritime cooperation between Baltic States and other NATO partners. He also visited the Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in Talinn.
The three Baltic States expressed their firm commitment and interest in future support to Standing Naval Forces, to include command. Lithuania is currently commanding Standing NATO Mine Counter-Measures Group ONE during operations in the Baltic Sea.
Vice Admiral Hudson said: “We have made great strides together in the past 10 years of membership in NATO, and their continued support and force contributions will be vital to the success of our Allied maritime operations going forward.”