MEZIESBLOG

Russia says it is banning 32 experts and employees at British thinktanks.

Moscow has accused them of pushing an anti-Russian line in Western policy circles, Reuters reports. 

People on the list of those banned, which has been published on the Russian foreign ministry’s website, have also been accused of spreading disinformation designed to discredit Moscow. 

Lithuania starts building base for 4,000 German troops

Lithuania has today started building a military base that will accommodate up to 4,000 German troops once it’s completed by the end of 2027.

It will be the first permanent foreign deployment for the German military since the end of the Second World War.

Lithuania’s chief of defence, Raimundas Vaiksnoras, estimated it would spend more than a billion euros building the base over the next three years.

Amid fears Russia could eventually decide to invade other neighbouring countries, Mr Vaiksnoras said it would give “reassurance to our population and as deterrence, to push the Russians out”.

The base will be located near the capital Vilnius, which is about 150 miles from the Russian border and 12 miles from Belarus, a staunch supporter of the Kremlin.

German defence minister Boris Pistorius compared the posting of 4,000 troops to allied forces being stationed in West Germany during the Cold War – a move that was also designed to defend Europe in the case of a Soviet attack.

Before we go, here’s a reminder of current events:

• A “battle of bridges” may be about to start after Ukraine targeted a third Russian bridge in the region of Kursk, defence and security analyst Professor Michael Clarke said;
• A mandatory evacuation order for families with children has begun in the city of Pokrovsk in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, as Russian forces advance;
  Sir Keir Starmer’s spokesman says there has been “no change” in the UK’s position on Ukraine using Storm Shadow missiles inside Russia’s borders;
• Ukraine’s attack on the Kursk region means Russia is not ready to hold peace talks for now, an aide to Vladimir Putin has said;
• Elon Musk has denied gifting a Tesla Cybertruck to a Chechen warlord;
• Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy gave a clear indication as to the goals of the two week-old invasion for the first time last night, saying he wanted to create a buffer zone for his country.