1,000 bunkers and dragon’s teeth: Baltic states prepare for Russian invasion

The Baltic states are actively preparing for a Russian invasion, strengthening their defensive capabilities and constructing fortifications, according to The Times. Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia are reinforcing the thousand-kilometer stretch of their eastern borders – the most vulnerable part of the NATO flank.

The borders that the Baltic nations share with Russia, including the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, and Belarus, will be fortified with dragon’s teeth, minefields, anti-tank ditches, barbed wire, and 1,000 fortified bunkers.

Estonia plans to construct 600 defensive structures on its border with Russia at a cost of around €60 million. Each artillery-resistant bunker will be 37 square meters in size and accommodate 10 soldiers, according to the country’s Deputy Defense Minister, Susan Lilleväli.

The project gained steam after information surfaced about a potential Russian attack on the Baltic countries, and reports suggested that Russia intends to double the number of troops near its borders with the three countries. Moscow also plans on establishing a new army corps in Petrozavodsk, near St. Petersburg and Russia’s border with Finland.

The planned fortifications will slow down the advancement of Russian forces and redirect them to areas where NATO can respond on more favorable terms, according to Major Donatas Palavenis, a Lithuanian army officer and research fellow at the Baltic Institute of Advanced Technology in Vilnius.

“The construction of this fortified line will undoubtedly require time and resources, but its effectiveness is evident in the war in Ukraine, where forces are unable to breach obstacles and seize significant territory effectively,” emphasized Palavenis.