NATO Military Committee Chairman Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone said in an interview with Al Arabiya that the alliance plans to move additional forces to its eastern flank. He also said NATO members are working through options for the most effective deterrence measures.

According to the admiral, the alliance intends to organize and coordinate these efforts under reliable leadership, linking the entire eastern line from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea.

Earlier, Reuters reported in late May that NATO was preparing a major reinforcement of its eastern defenses through the deployment of command structures for a new army corps. According to the agency’s sources, Germany and the Netherlands agreed to form a joint German-Dutch corps to defend the Baltic states. The move is expected to allow troops to be rapidly deployed to Latvia and Estonia in the event of a possible conflict with Russia.

Last autumn, NATO General Christopher Donahue also presented a broad plan to strengthen the alliance’s eastern borders. The concept gives a central role to drones and an increase in heavy weapons. The initiative was developed amid concerns within NATO over a possible war with Russia.