„NATO's top military commander sought Monday to steady an anxious Europe, outlining the alliance's new military plan to thwart a potential Russian assault along its eastern flank with a mix of firepower, autonomous systems and sensors that borrows from the lessons of Ukraine.
The speech by Gen. Alexus Grynkewich on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's "theory of victory" outlined a series of steps to block an initial attack and, if aggression continues, break the adversary's ability to control and support its forces.
The goal would be to stop the invasion in its tracks while minimizing the risk of conventional or nuclear escalation by stopping short of the complete destruction of the enemy.
Speaking onstage after his address at the Warsaw Security Forum, Grynkewich said he presented the strategy both to reassure Europeans made nervous by Russian aggression and to send a message "should someone be foolish enough to try to attack our territory."
Grynkewich, a U.S. Air Force general who serves as both the head of American forces in Europe and the alliance's top commander, delivered the speech in Poland, a U.S. ally that has been worried about Russian President Vladimir Putin's intentions toward Europe as the conflict in Ukraine enters its fifth year.
While Grynkewich outlined his veiled warnings to Moscow -- which he didn't identify by name in his speech -- President Trump's weekend pronouncements left European allies and U.S. lawmakers reeling.
"Outlining military plans is important, but it can't be divorced from addressing what everyone is worried about: Trump's outbursts, events in Ukraine and threats to Europe, and questions on whether we're pulling significant U.S. forces out of Europe," said Kurt Volker, a former U.S. envoy to NATO and later to Ukraine under the first Trump administration.
Some Republican lawmakers have criticized Trump over a deal, which he announced over the weekend, to import Russian diesel fuel, warning it hands Moscow financial assistance without making a significant dent in U.S. energy prices. Shortly after Trump announced the energy ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine, Russian forces attacked a power plant in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv.
That Grynkewich's reassurance was needed at all marks a turnabout for an alliance that once believed it had won the Cold War and harvested a peace dividend.
Grynkewich said a classified version of his plan had been finalized three months ago and it called for investing in "affordable mass," a reference to the relatively cheap drones Ukraine has used to complement the alliance's arsenal of more sophisticated weapons.
If Russia attacked, the alliance's first goal would be to block the initial assault and prevent any advances if it continues. In carrying out such a strategy, the NATO commander indicated the alliance would not be seeking to vanquish Russia or undermine its government. "We are not seeking to impose a strategic defeat on our adversary," he said. "Rather, we are only seeking to stop any attack in its tracks."
Grynkewich didn't provide a timetable for stiffening the defenses. The alliance's efforts are taking place against the background of munitions shortages in Europe of American PAC-3 Patriot air defense interceptors and Atacms surface-to-surface missiles, as U.S. munitions have been funneled to the Middle East to contend with Iran.
NATO's "theory of victory" draws on the efforts of retired Gen. Chris Donahue, the former U.S. Army commander in Europe and head of the alliance's Land Command, who was forced out of his post in July when Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth downgraded his post.
Under its strategy, an "autonomous zone" would be established so that drones and ground robots could blunt a Russian attack without extensive allied casualties.
At the same time, long-range missiles would strike Russian command posts and air defenses in the exclave of Kaliningrad, near St. Petersburg and in Belarus. That would puncture Russia's efforts to control the skies and enable the U.S. Army's V Corps and other NATO ground forces to counterattack.
NATO air forces would move to strike Russian reinforcements as they streamed toward the battlefield and to attack other targets in the rear.
Some veteran officials hailed NATO's efforts to update its strategy, but said the test for the alliance would be committing the resources to put it fully in place.
"It is great that NATO is through this adaptation, but they have to hurry. And nations have to come through with the money and the political will to do this," said Jim Townsend, who served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for Europe and NATO during the Obama administration. "NATO as an institution can do the planning, but it is the members who are going to have to go home, spend the money and train the troops."“ [1]
Important here are the promises by the West not to use nukes and not to try conquer all Russia. Will Russians believe these promises? Survival of humanity in this predicament depends on it.
1. World News: NATO Military Chief Lays Out Plan Designed to Thwart Moscow. Gordon, Michael R; Gramer, Robbie; Michaels, Daniel. Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y.. 13 Oct 2026: A8.
Komentarų nėra:
Rašyti komentarą