Latvia’s border with Russia features many roadblocks, cameras and high fences topped with barbed wire. But the Baltic country also turning to its landscapes, including rivers and peatlands, as part of its defense strategy.

“By diverting the flow of the water, we can artificially flood these territories if needed so we can create an additional barrier in a crisis,” Colonel Andris Rieksts of the Latvian Armed Forces tells DW.

Discover why rewatering peatlands could not only a defense against Russia but also be a way to combat global warming.