The European Baltic Sea region country have long shared close political, security, and defense ties. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 highlighted the importance of these linkages and the necessity of building a more comprehensive approach to regional security and defense. In this context, Carnegie’s Baltic Sea Region Security Initiative brings together public and private sector representatives from every country in the region to discuss how to cooperate and overcome the most pressing challenges. In fostering greater coordination and cooperation, the Baltic Sea region can become a laboratory for other operational theaters in Europe.
The Europe Program in Washington explores the political and security developments within Europe, transatlantic relations, and Europe’s global role. Working in coordination with Carnegie Europe in Brussels, the program brings together U.S. and European policymakers and experts on strategic issues facing Europe.
Dan Baer
Senior Vice President for Policy Research, Director, Europe Program
Dan Baer is senior vice president for policy research and director of the Europe Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Under President Obama, he was U.S. ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and he also served deputy assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor.
Sophia Besch
Senior Fellow, Europe Program
Sophia Besch is a senior fellow in the Europe Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Her research focuses on European foreign and defense policy.
Ramping up the Joint Expeditionary Force would contribute to European security and prepare the continent for a second Trump administration.
As NATO adapts to its new strategic environment, the Baltic Sea region could be strengthened. Increased regionalization and specialization of capabilities could enhance the alliance as a whole.
Since Baltic and Nordic member countries remain invested in the force, they should ensure that it has realistic tasks, is resourced to perform them, and contributes to NATO activities in the region.
Complex security challenges to undersea communications infrastructure are forcing NATO, the EU, and individual European governments to adapt, yet many efforts remain in their infancy.
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A coordinated multilateral response will be more effective than a national one.
In the wake of Finland and Sweden’s accessions to NATO, the alliance’s northern military power will be greatly expanded—if the Nordic and Baltic states adequately coordinate to overcome risks such as overstretching and competition.
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Join the Carnegie Endowment’s Europe Program to begin NATO Summit week with a discussion of how leaders in Washington and beyond might make a stronger case for NATO, including to those wary of military engagements overseas.
As Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine reminds European countries about the importance of manpower, many are once again weighing the promise and perils of compulsory military service.
The future of European security is on the ballot in 2024. Both in Europe and the United States, the growing appeal of right-wing candidates and ideologies threatens democratic values and multilateral cooperation.
To align and coordinate its response, NATO urgently needs to create a NATO command center that would focus solely on the Baltic Sea region.
