“The Pentagon is asking the Baltic states to tone down their rhetoric regarding the threat from russia”, - BBC News Russian reported on October 30, citing Reuters.
Reuters cites four sources “familiar with the situation”. According to them, the reason for the request was the perception that some statements by European leaders and officials undermine the security of the continent.
Reuters identified the specific official who made these demands behind closed doors.
“His name is Elbridge Colby. He heads the Pentagon’s Office of Defense Policy and has been a key figure in the ongoing review of the number of U.S. troops in Europe. Colby recently told a Baltic official that any provocative remarks directed at russians were unacceptable. According to the source, Colby cited public statements by Europeans that russia had been ‘cornered like a rat’ as an example of harmful rhetoric. He was likely referring to Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal, who called putin ‘a rat in a corner’ in late September, suggesting that the russian leader was resorting to sabotage in Europe because russia was becoming increasingly bogged down in Ukraine”, - Ukrainian Operational News reported, citing Reuters.
It is noted that the defense ministries of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia did not comment on the Reuters report.