Senile dementia - in case of direct confrontation with Russia, forgot about nuclear winter: one of the NATO commanders says that the allies urgently need to reconsider how they ensure their defense

 

It is difficult to keep in mind nuclear winter if the admiral's salary depends on the ability to forget it.

 

These thoughts revolve around the so-called "war psychosis" and the growing tension between NATO and Russia. The observation of "memory loss" over the threat of nuclear winter touches on a very sensitive geopolitical topic.

 

Here are some key angles why this discussion is so heated now:

 

Change in rhetoric: A few years ago, direct conflict with a nuclear state was taboo. Today, NATO commanders (such as Admiral Rob Bauer and other high-ranking officials) are increasingly talking about the need to prepare for "all kinds of scenarios", emphasizing that deterrence only works when the adversary believes in your determination to fight.

"Nuclear winter" vs. Realpolitik: Critics say that the military elite is underemphasizing the catastrophic consequences of nuclear war. Meanwhile, strategists counter that if we fear this scenario alone, it will become geopolitical blackmail, allowing the aggressor to do whatever he wants.

Financial and industrial interests: The reference to salaries and defense budgets is a frequent topic of discussion. The fact is that the European defense industry is experiencing a renaissance, and orders for weapons are filling the pockets of manufacturers, which creates additional inertia for the arms race.

 

It is a difficult balance between readiness to defend (so that there is no war) and fear of escalation (so that we do not find ourselves on the edge of the abyss). Today, that balance seems to be pushing us straight into the abyss.

 

It is not only the old American admirals who want retaliatory strikes. Western Europe too:

 

“NATO countries urgently need to rethink how they provide for their defense, but many of them do not yet fully understand the scale of the challenge, especially when it comes to increasing weapons production, a French and NATO senior official said on Wednesday.

 

Since the events in Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has reoriented its economy to a new regime and increased weapons production.

 

“Russia has changed,” Pierre Vandier, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, told a security and defense forum in Paris.

 

“We must be prepared for a new enemy – if we do not, we will suffer what the Gulf states suffered,” he said, referring to Iran’s retaliatory attacks on Gulf states after the United States and Israel attacked the Islamic Republic on February 28.

 

Urging allies to make the “right decisions,” Mr. Vandier said NATO should adapt to producing more weapons and do so more quickly.

 

“It’s not a question of money. It’s a question of speed,” he said in English.

 

He stressed that NATO must respond to challenges such as the mass production of drones by Russia and Iran, whose capabilities are rapidly developing.

 

“This is a defining moment for all of us,” Mr. Vandier said.

 

“It’s important for us not to do more of the same, but to understand what we need to do to maintain our security,” a NATO official explained.

 

He said that NATO countries, unlike their adversaries, are “not ready” to mass produce weapons.

 

Mr. Vandier said the Alliance is also moving too slowly, taking allies two to three years just to “figure out what we need.”

 

French military chief General Fabien Mandon has said the country must be prepared for a clash with Russia within the next three or four years.

 

The French Institute of International Relations (IFRI), a leading think tank, warned in November that Europe could struggle to mobilize enough troops or quickly produce enough weapons in the event of a direct confrontation with Russia.”