NATO is not planning to boost its military presence in Baltic nations, which have called for extra protection from their Russian neighbour, the alliance's head Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday.

"Currently we are not planning to increase our military presence in the region, but what we are planning is to strengthen our ability to reinforce if needed," Stoltenberg told reporters after talks with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

The leaders of Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, occupied and annexed by the Soviet Union during World War II, are seeking extra US aid to ward off any Russian moves against them.

They are urging the United States to send more troops and bolster air defences on NATO's eastern flank.

Last year, NATO deployed four multinational battalions to Poland and the Baltic states as tripwires against possible Russian adventurism, while the US military sent a Patriot battery to Lithuania for drills.

"If there is a need, we need to have ready forces which can deploy very quickly," Stoltenberg added.

The issue is set to be discussed at the next NATO summit in July in Brussels, he added.

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, the Baltic countries have turned away from Moscow's orbit by joining NATO's mutual defence pact and the European Union.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has never made any secret of the fact that he resents this and regards former Soviet republics as belonging in Moscow's zone of influence.

Russian general and NATO commander meet in Baku
Moscow (AFP) April 19, 2018 - The Russian army Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov and NATO's Commander in Europe Curtis Scaparrotti held a rare meeting in Azerbaijan's capital Baku on Thursday.

The two men discussed "the military activity of NATO and Russia in Europe, reinforcing confidence and preventing incidents," the Russian defence ministry said in a statement.

They also exchanged views "on the situation in Syria, emphasising the importance of cooperation in the fight against international terrorism," it added.

NATO said the conversation "focused on issues related to military posture and exercises".

"This face-to-face meeting demonstrates a clear mutual interest to maintain the military lines of communication, to align with NATO's policy of dialogue and transparency," it added in a statement.

General Valery Gerasimov had already met Jon Dunford, Chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, in Baku in February 2016. The military men then pledged to "reinforce communication" between their armies.

The United States and Russia already use a line of military communication on their aerial operations in Syria to prevent incidents between the two countries.

Washington ended all military cooperation with Russia after Moscow annexed the Crimea peninsula from Ukraine in 2014, including ending joint exercises and visits of US ships to Russian ports.

Tensions between Russia and the US rose to new levels last week after a Washington-led strike against the Syrian regime which Moscow denounced as "aggression" against its ally.

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Turkey to sack 3,000 more military over Gulen links
Ankara (AFP) April 18, 2018
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