BAKU, Azerbaijan, August 11. Lithuanian Minister of National Defense, Dovilė Šakalienė will visit the US from August 11 through 13 for a series of high-level meetings with senior defense officials and industry leaders, Trend reports.
During the visit, she will meet with the leadership of the Pennsylvania National Guard, the Chief of the U.S. National Guard Bureau, and representatives from the defense industry and artificial intelligence companies.
The agenda includes visits to U.S. military units and engagements with American media outlets. Minister Šakalienė noted that Lithuania’s long-standing partnership with the Pennsylvania National Guard, which began in 1993 under the State Partnership Program, has become a model for international cooperation.
She emphasized that cooperation in drone and counter-drone systems will be a priority, along with training drone operators and sharing operational lessons learned.
Over the past three decades, the Pennsylvania National Guard has been a key partner in enhancing Lithuania’s defense capabilities.
Since 2019, the U.S. has maintained a continuous presence of heavy battalions in Lithuania, reinforced since 2022 with artillery units. This forward presence remains a vital element of deterrence and security in the Baltic region.
In the past three years, Lithuania has procured approximately 2 billion euros worth of defense equipment from the United States, making it the largest U.S. defense procurement partner among the Baltic states.
Purchases include Javelin anti-tank missile systems, JLTV armored vehicles, Black Hawk helicopters, HIMARS rocket artillery systems, AMRAAM missiles for NASAMS medium-range air defense, Switchblade drones, and more.
This fall, Lithuania plans to open new infrastructure and training facilities for U.S. forces, with national investments in these projects exceeding $200 million.