Overview
- At a handover ceremony in Kaunas, the Multinational Battlegroup Lithuania was placed under Panzerbrigade 45 command, lifting the deployed force from roughly 500 to about 1,800 troops.
- The brigade’s core includes Germany’s Panzergrenadierbataillon 122 and Panzerbataillon 203, reinforced by leadership, medical and logistics units.
- Plans call for a permanent strength of roughly 4,800 soldiers plus about 200 civilian staff living in Lithuania, with some accompanied by families.
- Long‑term basing centers on new barracks and a training area in Rudninkai, with interim accommodation near Vilnius and locations in Rukla.
- Berlin frames the unit as a deterrent on NATO’s eastern flank, integrating allied contingents such as the Netherlands, Norway and Luxembourg.