Chancellor says Germany open to boosting troops in Baltics

Olaf Scholz reaffirmed that Germany will not 'deliver lethal weapons to Ukraine'

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. AP

Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Sunday said Germany was prepared to send extra troops to the Baltic states, before a trip to Washington where he will seek to bolster his influence in the Ukraine crisis.

"We are ... prepared to do whatever is necessary to strengthen" Germany's presence in Nato operations in the Baltics, Mr Scholz told the ARD broadcaster.

Germany leads a Nato operation in Lithuania and has about 500 soldiers stationed there.

Mr Scholz said Germany was "ready to make a decision" at a Nato defence ministers' meeting in mid-February about sending reinforcements.

Defence Minister Christine Lambrecht earlier told the Funke media group that Germany was prepared to strengthen its presence in Lithuania.

"In principle, troops are ... available for reinforcement and we are now in talks with Lithuania about what exactly would be useful," Ms Lambrecht said.

The pledge comes amid growing fears that Russia may be preparing to invade Ukraine, with President Vladimir Putin amassing more than 100,000 troops at the border.

Russia denies it plans to invade but has demanded wide-ranging security guarantees from the West, including that Ukraine never be allowed to join Nato.

Russian and Belarus troops held joint combat training at firing ranges in Belarus as tensions remain high under the looming threat of war with Ukraine. AP Photo

A soldier drives an armoured vehicle at Brestsky firing range, Belarus. AP Photo

A Ukrainian serviceman carries out checks not far from the pro-Russian militant-controlled city of Donetsk, Ukraine. EPA

A Russian military vehicle drives off a railway platform after arriving in Belarus. AP Photo

A soldier takes aim during a Russian and Belarusian military drill at Brestsky firing range. AP Photo

A Ukrainian serviceman repairs a shelter near Donetsk, Ukraine. EPA

Aircraft are lined up on 'USS Harry S Truman' in the Adriatic Sea. The Truman strike group is operating under Nato command and control along with several other Nato allies for co-ordinated maritime manoeuvres, anti-submarine warfare training and long-range training. Reuters

Russian soldiers attend the Yurginsky training ground in the Kemerovo region, Russia. AP Photo

A Ukrainian serviceman lays flowers where one of his friends was killed in 2017 near Avdiivka. Anatolii Stepanov / AFP

A Ukrainian serviceman stands guard in a dugout on the frontline with the Russia-backed separatists near Avdiivka. AFP

This satellite image shows troops gathered at a training ground in Pogonovo, Russia. AP Photo

Mr Scholz is facing growing criticism of Germany's apparently ambivalent stance in the crisis and will travel to Washington to meet US President Joe Biden on Monday.

He will also meet the leaders of the Baltic states in Berlin this week and will travel to Ukraine and Russia later this month.

Mr Scholz, who in December succeeded veteran leader Angela Merkel, on Sunday insisted on Germany's refusal to send weapons to Ukraine.

"For many years, the German government has had a clear course that we do not deliver to crisis zones and that we also do not deliver lethal weapons to Ukraine," he said.

Mr Scholz said Washington did not consider Germany to be the "weakest link" in Nato.

"That is a false impression that does not prevail in Washington either," he said.