FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Russia has the capacity to carry out a limited attack on NATO territory at any time, but the decision to act will depend on the stance of Western allies, a senior German military official has warned.
“If you look at Russia’s current capabilities and combat power, it could launch a small attack on NATO territory as early as tomorrow,” Lieutenant General Alexander Sollfrank told Reuters news agency. “Small, quick, regionally limited attack, nothing major, Russia is very engaged in Ukraine anyway.”
Sollfrank, who heads Germany's joint operations command and oversees defense planning, reiterated NATO warnings that Russia could launch a major attack on the 32-nation alliance as early as 2029 if its armament efforts continue.
Russian President Vladimir Putin denies aggressive intentions, saying the full invasion of Ukraine in 2022 was a defense against NATO's expansionist ambitions against Russia.
Speaking from his headquarters, a large barracks north of Berlin, Sollfrank said that despite the setbacks in Ukraine, Russia's air force retains considerable combat power, and its nuclear and missile forces remain intact. While the Black Sea Fleet has suffered heavy losses, other Russian fleets have not been reduced.
"Ground forces are suffering losses, but Russia says it aims to increase the total number of troops to 1.5 million soldiers. And Russia has enough battle tanks to make a limited attack possible as early as tomorrow," Sollfrank added, without saying that such an attack is currently being planned.
Sollfrank has led the Joint Operations Command since its establishment in 2024, a move that reflects a major shift from missions such as Afghanistan and Mali to defending NATO territory. Before taking up his current role, he headed NATO's logistics command, JSEC, in the southern German city of Ulm.
"Russian attack is possible"
Recently, drone incursions into Polish airspace have increased fears in the West of a Russian escalation.
Earlier this year, Berlin relaxed its constitutional debt limit to meet NATO's new military spending target of 3.5% of national output by 2029, a move that will increase the defense budget to around 160 billion euros from nearly 100 billion euros in 2025.
Germany also plans to expand its armed forces by 60,000 troops, bringing the total number of military personnel to around 260,000.
Sollfrank said that if Moscow were to choose to attack NATO, it would depend on three factors: Russia's military power, its combat experience and leadership.
"These three factors lead me to conclude that a Russian attack is within the realm of possibility. Whether it happens or not depends largely on our behavior," he added, referring to NATO's deterrence efforts.
The general noted that Moscow's hybrid warfare tactics, including drone infiltrations, should be seen as part of a coherent strategy that also includes the war in Ukraine.
"The Russians call this non-linear warfare. In their doctrine, this is warfare before the use of conventional weapons. And they threaten the use of nuclear weapons, which is warfare through intimidation," Sollfrank said.
Russia's goal, he added, is to provoke NATO and observe its reaction, to "stir up uncertainty, spread fear, cause damage, spy on and test" the alliance's resilience./Reuters
Lini një Përgjigje