Introduction
In a strategic contest between the West and Russia over the post-Cold War architecture, the security of the Baltic Sea region depends on its allies within NATO and the European Union. Since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, it has been clear that the Kremlin is not interested in maintaining the status quo or that it interprets it in a different way than the majority of democracies. Although EU and NATO enlargement in the region has not threatened Russia militarily, it has expanded the rule-based international order, championed by the West, into former Warsaw Pact countries as well as some former …read more