Lithuanian Prime Minister: Russia Won’t Attack Us on My Watch

In reality, we already have the strongest nuclear shield in the world — NATO’s. It’s based on shared deterrence protocols between the U.S. and the U.K. It’s a system in which seven NATO countries share nuclear weapons and the costs of maintaining them. There’s no real alternative to that system — and everyone knows it.

President Macron has begun a conversation about whether France could add its own nuclear capabilities to the current system. That discussion is still in the early stages, and no decisions are on the table yet. It’s a complementary idea, not a replacement. No matter what the U.S. political climate is, they are not walking away from their nuclear commitments.

It’s in America’s own interest to preserve the current deterrence model. The alternative — a situation where every country has its own nuclear bomb and the will to use it independently — runs completely counter to the principles of nuclear non-proliferation.

At the heart of U.S. strategy is maintaining the existing nuclear deterrent.

Interviewer: Lithuania, however, has knowledge of nuclear technology thanks to the Ignalina nuclear power plant...

Gintautas Paluckas: We do have expertise in nuclear technology, but building a nuclear bomb is only a small part of nuclear deterrence. I won’t even get into the nuclear triad, early warning systems, or aircraft carriers. That all costs enormous amounts of money. Right now, we need to invest in conventional weapons and military forces. Our goals are clear — we know what we need based on NATO’s regional defense plan.

Interviewer: Are you still developing your own nuclear power plant?

Gintautas Paluckas: We’re aiming for fourth-generation small modular reactors. That technology isn’t commercially available yet, but it’s under development, and we’re ready to wait. These are small, relatively inexpensive reactors with versatile applications — suitable for chemical industry, energy production, and district heating systems, for example.

Interviewer: What keeps you so optimistic about the United States?

Gintautas Paluckas: If you ignore the noise on social media and look at what’s happening on the ground, U.S. forces are still present in the Baltic states.

Whenever we meet with Americans — whether it’s military officials, intelligence representatives, or politicians — and the cameras are off, they all say the same thing: “We are NATO. We are not pulling out. We see what you're doing on NATO’s eastern flank. We respect your efforts. We respect everything the Baltic states and Poland are doing.” So far, everything is fine.

What truly worries me is that some politicians are playing the old appeasement game with Russia — the same kind of thinking we saw before the Second World War.

That said, every U.S. administration change is turbulent. A new administration means a new political style and new diplomatic approaches. It will probably take some time to get used to that. But let’s not jump to conclusions. Let’s not lose hope.

Everything the U.S. has promised to do — everything that needs to be done in the Baltic states and our region — they’re doing it. They are not backing away from their commitments. I’m optimistic because I look past what’s happening on social media. Once you do that, you see reality.

Interviewer: The Baltic states have decided to leave the Ottawa Convention banning anti-personnel landmines. Is Lithuania prepared to start mining its border with Russia and Belarus?

Gintautas Paluckas: We are proceeding with real caution here, because clearing so-called primitive landmines can take years, even decades, and it's usually civilians — not the military — who suffer the most from them.

But lessons from Ukraine show that in places where mines, barbed wire, and concrete blocks were used, the front line held. In areas where that wasn’t done, the line collapsed. Based on that, we need to procure or produce smart mines — ones that can be armed or disarmed remotely, without putting civilians at risk.

We’re currently in the process of denouncing the convention. The main reason for leaving it is to have our hands free if things take a turn for the worse.

For now, we are not placing any mines in the ground. But we are taking other measures to defend our borders. For example, we’ve banned tree cutting near the border to preserve natural barriers. We’re producing and purchasing concrete blocks to place along the border in a way that prevents vehicles from entering.

Interviewer: Are Lithuanian companies ready to produce landmines?

Gintautas Paluckas: We are developing that capability. Right now, we’re building a couple of explosives production facilities. We've already signed some contracts with local companies that are contributing to the production of anti-tank mines, for instance. At this stage, the production volumes are still small, but we’ll scale up through public procurement. That way, we’ll have munitions stockpiled in case we need them.

Interviewer: How is the deployment of the German brigade to Lithuania progressing?

Gintautas Paluckas: By the end of 2027, Germany will have deployed its brigade to Lithuania. A few hundred soldiers have already arrived to prepare for the rest. We’re talking about thousands of troops. We’re developing the necessary infrastructure for them. We’re investing €1.8 billion in building up that infrastructure for the German brigade. Essentially, we’re building a new city — and I mean that literally.

There will be housing for the soldiers, sports halls, kindergartens, trenches for armored vehicles, firing ranges, and training grounds. We’re planning to have everything ready on time so Germany can expand its presence. My concern is whether our construction companies can deliver all that infrastructure in such a short time. We’re moving at a truly fast pace.

But national defense is crucial. The entire society’s sense of security depends on it. When people feel safe, they start families, children are born, and businesses invest. It’s all connected.

Interviewer: What are you doing to maintain solid economic growth? Estonia hasn’t managed it.

Gintautas Paluckas: There are several reasons. First, Estonia’s main export markets are in Scandinavia. When there was a real estate crisis in Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Iceland, many sectors of the Estonian economy took a hit. Our main export market is Germany. Germany experienced stagnation, yes, but it didn’t crash as hard.

Second, Lithuanian society has remained optimistic about the future, despite the geopolitical situation. That optimism drives investment — companies are investing, people are buying new houses and apartments. Refugees from Ukraine and Belarus are also boosting domestic consumption — they need to buy things too.

Also, we didn’t raise taxes. That allowed the economy to keep running at full speed. Right now, our economic situation is strong. We have a solid 3% GDP growth rate, and we expect that to continue for the next four years.

The German economy is also regaining its strength. We hope that will benefit the whole region — not just Lithuania, but Estonia and Latvia as well.

Interviewer: Is Rail Baltica construction on track in Lithuania?

Gintautas Paluckas: This is the main — and only — infrastructure project in our region that is this visible and closely monitored by the European Commission. We cannot afford to fail. I know we’re not moving as fast as Estonia, but Lithuania is also accelerating its construction efforts, and together we need to help Latvia catch up.

We need additional funding — the entire project requires another €11 billion to complete. We have to build it. It’s a question of our countries’ reputation. We need Rail Baltica both for economic reasons and for military mobility.

Yes, we’ve had setbacks. We’ve lost time. Yes, inflation and rising prices have made it harder. But we must finish this together with Europe. It’s crucial for our entire region.

Interviewer: Do you consider yourself a wartime Prime Minister? Do you believe Russia might attack while you’re in office?

Gintautas Paluckas: No.