#55 “The Baltics were always going to be next” What can we do and what not to worry about w/ David Holahan, former US Defense Attache and Iraq war veteran

David Holahan is a former US Defense Attache to Latvia. He is also a retired US Marine Lt. Col. a 21-year veteran of the US Marine Corps. Having served in conflicts in Iraq and Somalia.

David spent over 10 years living in Baltics which gives him a unique viewpoint on the defense and security matters of our region both from local as well as US policy maker and NATO perspective.

This episode is first in a series of special episodes on how the Russian invasion of Ukraine affects us in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. 

It was recorded on March 29 and we bring you full-length unedited conversation. 

NEW! Watch full-length video conversation on YouTube > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsoM_RGae2E 

Remember to support Ukraine > https://war.ukraine.ua/ 

The topics covered in this episode with Timestamps

[01:45] - David’s background in military and US Diplomatic Service

[07:30] - Was Russia’s invasion a surprise

[10:50] - NATO was designed to keep the Germans down and the Russians out

[14:30] - Russia hate when the Baltics flip them off 

[19:30] - What are the implications for the the Baltics

[20:20] - The Baltics were always going to be next

[26:00] - The Baltic countries are not working closely enough together on their defense

[33:00] - How might the current war in Ukraine end?

[36:10] - The nuke is a huge bluff 

[39:10] - The battlefield is unpredictable, Russian army can disintegrate

[40:15] - Suggestions from David’s military experience on how to deal with stress

NEW! Watch this conversation in full-length on YouTube >  

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP6ueaLnjS-CQfrMCm2EoTA 

Listen to our previous episode with David > https://www.pursuitofscrappiness.co/episodes/episode-10-interview-david-holahan 

Find out over 50 other full length podcast episodes on >  https://www.pursuitofscrappiness.co/ 

Support for this episode comes from Nexpay > https://paynexpay.com/

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