29 LL-III: As I was reading the commentary, the thought came to me that the Eastern European states should form their own ‘NATO’ equivalent. They are local, they do have a bit of armament, and they have the will. It would give the bear a little hesitancy to attack one, if it was known beforehand that all of the rest would at least attempt to resist.
~~”We all hang together or for sure we will all hang separately.” -someone wise

The influx of the Russian speaking populace of those states was an attempt to coerce long-term loyalty to Mother Russia. Whether it will pay off or not is still to be decided.
I am not so sure that the time has passed nor the opportunity foreclosed for Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Poland and Georgia to form a self-help organization. None of them wish to be under the thumb of the bear again.
Perhaps I am whistling in the wind…
tom