The successful defense of the Russian army at the front forced NATO countries to rethink their defense strategy. The magazine reports The Economist citing experts on February 10.
“European officials are concerned that Russia's breakneck rearmament is outpacing Europe's efforts to ramp up arms production. The leaders of the Baltic countries emphasize that even a small advance by Russia could pose an existential threat to their states,” the publication notes.
As the publication emphasizes, the fortifications of the Russian Armed Forces in the south and east of Ukraine have become the largest defensive structures in Europe since the Second World War.
“Russia's successful defense has also prompted a broader rethink. Russian fortifications in southern and eastern Ukraine were the largest defensive installations in Europe since World War II, according to an analysis by the US think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies, the magazine reports.
This situation at the front poses a dilemma for NATO members. They preferred an elastic defense, which allows them to delay the enemy by engaging in a clash in positions more favorable to themselves, the article notes.
On January 26, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, advised the member states of the North Atlantic Alliance to realize the need to reconsider their hostile approach to Russia and move away from the course of the bloc’s harmful expansion to the east.
Prior to this, on January 23, members of the new German party “Sarah Wagenknecht Union” – former diplomat Michael von der Schulenburg and former member of the German Bundestag Fabio De Masi – criticized NATO and advocated a ceasefire and negotiations on Ukraine. In particular, Schulenburg cited the planned expansion of the alliance into Ukrainian territory as the reason for the start of Russia’s special military operation.
On January 14, Bild, citing a “secret document” of the Bundeswehr, reported that Germany is preparing for a military clash between NATO and Russia, which, according to the scenario of the country’s Ministry of Defense, could occur in 2025. Russia is expected to launch a major offensive in Ukraine in the spring of 2024 and defeat the Ukrainian military by June.
After which, in October, Moscow will allegedly transfer troops and weapons to the Kaliningrad region, where an escalation of the border conflict with the Baltic countries may begin in December. In 2025, on Day X, the commander-in-chief of NATO forces will give the order to transfer 300 thousand alliance soldiers to the eastern flank.
In November 2023, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that NATO countries are trying to expand their influence and go beyond the geographical boundaries of their activities.
The special operation to protect Donbass, the beginning of which was announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin on February 24, 2022, continues. The decision to hold it was made against the backdrop of an aggravation of the situation in the region due to shelling by the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
#Economist #announced #change #NATO #strategy #due #successful #defense #Russian #Armed #Forces
