The article is assessing how NATO’s Enhanced Forward Presence in the Baltic states and Poland has altered the strategic balance in the Baltic Sea region. Before 2016, Russia enjoyed clear escalation dominance there. However, the deployment of multinational, combat-ready NATO forces with the logic that any attack on them would induce a collective NATO response has changed this calculus. Since then, the burden is on Russia, whether the three Baltic states are worthy enough for Moscow to take up a major war against NATO.
NATO’S ENHANCED FORWARD PRESENCE: CHANGING THE ESCALATION DOMINANCE CALCULUS IN THE BALTIC SEA REGION
