Region
NATO’s eastern flank, the Baltic and the Nordic north, Russia’s neighbours and Europe’s own power struggles.
Europe11 min read
Moscow has called NATO's eastward growth a threat since at least 2007, and it calls Ukraine a red line. Here is Russia's case, the answers from Kyiv and NATO, the record from Bucharest to Ankara, and where the bid stands in today's peace talks.
Europe9 min read
Until 1945, Kaliningrad was the German city of Königsberg, founded by crusading knights almost 700 years earlier. Here is how it became Russian, why it is cut off from the rest of Russia, and why it now sits at the centre of Moscow's warnings to NATO.
Europe9 min read
Sweden stayed out of military alliances for two centuries. Russia's invasion of Ukraine changed its mind in weeks, but getting into NATO took almost two years.
Europe10 min read
A 1920 treaty makes Svalbard Norwegian but open to the citizens of dozens of countries, and it limits military use. That is why a Russian mining town and NATO's northern sea lanes meet on these Arctic islands.
Europe10 min read
A 65 km strip of lakes and farmland between Kaliningrad and Belarus is the only land link between NATO's Baltic members and the rest of the alliance. Moscow sees the same strip as Kaliningrad's missing link.
Europe9 min read
Russia is building barracks, depots and headquarters along its 1,340 km border with Finland, NATO's newest frontier. The soldiers to fill them are mostly still in Ukraine.
Europe9 min read
Poland now has more soldiers than any other EU country, by its own count, and its leaders want Europe's largest army. History, geography and the war next door explain why. The bill explains the doubts.
