DISINFO: NATO and the EU deliberately stoke tensions in the Baltic region
SUMMARY
NATO and EU countries are deliberately stoking tensions in the Baltic region, increasing the risk of incidents, including unintentional ones. Russia is taking this into account in its military planning. The Baltic region was until recently the most peaceful in Europe. There were no objective factors whatsoever for it to become the scene of military rivalry. Today, it is the European region most at risk of a serious conflict.
RESPONSE
This is a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative that seeks to portray NATO and the EU as the aggressors, shift responsibility for tensions in the Baltic region away from Russia, and present Russia’s actions as merely defensive.
In reality, Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified aggression against Ukraine fundamentally changed Europe’s security environment. It prompted Finland and Sweden to join NATO and led Allies to strengthen deterrence and defence measures in the Baltic region. These steps are a response to Russia’s actions and the security concerns they have created, not an attempt to provoke confrontation.
The assertion that there were ‘no objective factors’ for military rivalry is particularly misleading. Russia's military activity, aggressive rhetoric, GPS interference affecting civilian aviation and shipping, hybrid operations targeting critical infrastructure, and continued military deployments in the Baltic region have all contributed to security concerns among the Baltic states and other NATO members. Russia has also continued to project military power in the region, including the deployment of the frigate Admiral Kasatonov in the Baltic Sea in August 2026. These actions, together with repeated provocations and threats directed at the Baltic states and Poland, directly contradict the claim that there are no objective reasons for heightened security concerns in the region.
Read similar disinformation cases claiming that Western Europe needs a Russian threat as a unifying cause, that The Gallant Boar 2026 drill prepares a NATO invasion of Kaliningrad, and that Poland wants to boost NATO’s piracy against Russian ships in the Baltic Sea.