Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia are strengthening their defences in anticipation of possible new aggression by the Kremlin

Amid the growing threat from Russia and the war in Ukraine, the Baltic states - Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia - are strengthening their defences and preparing for a potential conflict with the Kremlin, NBC writes.

In particular, Latvia is actively rebuilding shelter systems and updating its security infrastructure.

In the capital, Riga, signs with the inscription "patvertne", which means "shelter", have appeared on the city's buildings. These signs have come to symbolise the city's readiness to meet the threat from the east," journalists point out.

Latvia's defence minister, Andris Spruds, stressed that the country is already "on the front lines", strengthening its defence posture and developing drone initiatives in cooperation with NATO allies. US diplomat Matthew Whitaker predicted that the next war could start not with tanks, but with cyberattacks on critical infrastructure.

The first shot will be to destroy airports or a cyberattack," he warned.

NATO, too, is realising the changed picture of future warfare. The former chairman of NATO's military committee, Admiral Rob Bauer, noted that the wars of tomorrow will not be as we are used to imagining them. The president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, said that the West had ignored Baltic warnings about the Russian threat for too long.

Latvia, for its part, is not only strengthening its borders, but also actively changing its infrastructure. A fence has already been built on the border with Russia, Riga has been disconnected from the Russian power grid, and a Soviet memorial has been demolished. To ensure safety in the city, new mobile applications are being developed to help people quickly find shelters.

The main goal is to be prepared for any eventuality. We have a crazy neighbour who wants to destroy our country, and he is not hiding it," said former deputy mayor of Riga, Linda Ozola.