Few of us have likely heard of the
Suwałki Gap. It's a thin strip of territory linking Poland and Lithuania in the northeastern corner of Europe. But this narrow corridor of land has been described by NATO defense analysts as the "most dangerous place on Earth."
And their fears are warranted. The Suwałki Gap also serves as the shortest path between Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. Were the gap ever to be seized by Russia, the Baltic nations would be physically cut off from their NATO allies, leaving them isolated by land. Moscow would be in control of one of the most strategically important regions on the continent.
The scenario is frightening, and such an event would have global implications. So, how was this vital but vulnerable frontier created, and what's being done to defend it? Click on to continue reading.