German Tanks Roll Into Vilnius - Don't Worry, It's Not 1941

In June 1941, German tanks rolled into Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. The Germans, at first, were greeted as liberators, as some, as they were driving troops of the Soviet Union before them. That illusion didn't last, of course, but Lithuania remained under the German boot until the Battle of Memel in 1945, when Red Army forces drove the last German forces out of Lithuania and Latvia.

Now, German tanks are again rolling into Vilnius, but this time, they aren't there to conquer. In 2004, Lithuania became part of NATO, and Germany's new 45th Armoured Brigade will be stationed there permanently, partly in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and possible Russian aggression elsewhere.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz is travelling to Vilnius to attend an inauguration parade of the 45th Armoured Brigade.
The ceremony will see 600 German soldiers line up on the city’s central Cathedral Square and includes a military equipment display and joint concert by German and Lithuanian army bands.
Germany’s new tank brigade was officially launched into service on May 22 in Lithuania, where it will be stationed permanently.

There are probably some elderly folks in Vilnius who have troubled memories of the first time German panzers rolled into Vilnius. But it's a different world now than it was in 1941.

Germany's Chancellor will be attending a welcoming ceremony for the 45th:

Chancellor Friedrich Merz is travelling to Vilnius to attend an inauguration parade of the 45th Armoured Brigade.
The ceremony will see 600 German soldiers line up on the city’s central Cathedral Square and includes a military equipment display and joint concert by German and Lithuanian army bands.
Merz will be welcomed by Lithuania’s foreign minister Kestutis Budrys, and will then head to the Presidential Palace for talks with President Gitanas Nauseda.
The ceremony marks an important milestone in Germany’s first permanent deployment of troops on foreign soil since the Second World War.
In December 2023, Germany and Lithuania signed a plan to station 4,800 German soldiers, 200 civilian workers, and more than 150 armoured vehicles (including 44 Leopard 2A6 tanks) in the Baltic country.
The deployment was agreed following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and is intended to bolster defences on NATO’s Eastern flank.

This is one of those interesting little historical ironies, as one of NATO's supposed original purposes was to keep "The Russians out and the Germans down." Now the Germans are helping to keep the Russians out of a country that Germany invaded in the conflict that, when it ended, was to give rise to NATO. I remember when the Berlin Wall fell and Germany was reunited, West joining East Germany to form one nation again, with the ghost of Otto von Bismarck perhaps looking on, smiling. There were, I suspect, a lot of people in Eastern Europe who weren't happy with that development. Lots of those folks preferred that Germany be broken up.

Now, at least one of those nations is welcoming German panzers.

Confirmed: 3 US Soldiers Dead, 1 Still Missing After Freak Training Accident in Lithuania

While Putin is unlikely to attack a NATO nation, the citizens of Lithuania are reportedly happy with the presence of German (and other NATO) troops.

Lithuanians are reportedly happy about the German troop commitment. According to a recent survey, 85 per cent of the country’s citizens agree with the deployment of the German armoured brigade.
A similar percentage also believes the presence of NATO allies in the country will deter any hostile military action.

Predictions are hard to make, especially about the future. But the best we can hope for is that Russia's Tsar Vladimir I won't set his envious gaze on a NATO nation, and in the unlikely event he does, maybe the Germans will remember they once had a proud martial tradition - while eschewing the whole "invading France" thing they have historically kept trying. Meanwhile, there may well be an old, old man in Vilnius, watching the German tanks roll in with some trepidation.

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