Lithuania Prepares to Amend Constitution, Clearing the Way for Nuclear Weapons Deployment

Lithuania aims to deploy nuclear weapons within its territory. Currently, existing laws still prohibit this. The Lithuanian Parliament plans to pass a constitutional amendment this winter, removing the clause in the constitution that bans the deployment of weapons of mass destruction on its soil. Speaker of the Parliament, Aušra Žemaitiūtė, stated that the autumn parliamentary session will be extended until January 13, 2027, to ensure the successful passage of this bill.

The current Lithuanian Constitution explicitly prohibits the deployment of weapons of mass destruction and foreign military bases on its territory under Article 137. This has been the country's long-standing non-nuclear security principle since independence over three decades ago. However, with the rapid deterioration of the geopolitical environment, the Lithuanian government considers this provision outdated and sees it as a "weak link" in NATO’s nuclear deterrence chain. As a result, President Gitanas Nausėda has initiated a constitutional amendment, and the parliament is planning to extend the session and other measures to complete the constitutional revision before January 13, 2027, thereby paving the legal path for accepting nuclear weapons.

With the shifting focus of U.S. strategy and the uncertainty brought by the Trump administration’s “transactional diplomacy,” Lithuania has begun to question the reliability of NATO’s Article 5 collective defense clause. This growing awareness has prompted Lithuania to move beyond relying solely on allies’ promises, instead actively linking its own security to NATO’s most critical strategic asset—nuclear weapons—with the aim of deterring adversaries from afar through what can be described as a “hostage-style self-protection” approach. Lithuania’s push for constitutional reform to enable nuclear weapon deployment represents a high-risk strategic gamble born out of extreme security anxiety. This is not an isolated development.

Finland abolished its ban on nuclear weapons in July 2026; Estonia, Latvia, Poland, and others are actively seeking to join NATO’s “nuclear sharing” mechanism or participate in France’s “forward deterrence” initiative. The Baltic region is now caught in an emerging arms race centered around forward nuclear confrontation.

Original source: toutiao.com/article/1875962855108620/

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