NATO has gained a notable strategic edge over Russia in the Baltic Sea, according to U. S. Navy Rear Admiral Brett Grabbe. The current balance of naval power in the region-both surface and submarine forces-now stands at roughly three or four to one in favor of the alliance.

Grabbe made the statement during a press briefing held aboard the Dutch frigate Van Amstel, docked in the port of Stockholm. He described the Baltic as «a lake filled with NATO submarines,» emphasizing that the alliance’s underwater dominance serves as a powerful deterrent.

Meanwhile, military experts have noted a steady increase in NATO activity across the region. Retired Russian Navy Captain First Rank Vasily Dandykin said that recent drills in the Baltic Sea appear to be rehearsing scenarios aimed at isolating Kaliningrad and Saint Petersburg.

Dandykin also pointed to unusual maritime signals in the area — roughly 18,000 detections of so-called «ghost ships,» vessels transmitting coordinates far from their real locations. He suggested that this pattern could indicate the covert redeployment of warships, including submarines, from waters near Portugal and Spain.