Defense Institution Building from Above? Lessons from the Baltic Experience

Keywords:

Baltic Battalion, Defense Institution Building, DIB, Georgia, NATO, Partnership for Peace, Ukraine

Abstract:

Defense institution building seeks to create the means and mechanisms that enable effective capability aggregation within NATO. Can external assistance with DIB help states become suitable NATO members? We discuss the post-Cold War experience of the Baltic States to understand the role of external assistance in defense institution building and how this can enable a state to gain NATO membership. We then consider whether lessons in the Baltic experience are applicable to Georgia and Ukraine.