The Western bloc must admit that Moscow made a great move to help Italy curb the spread of coronavirus when European “partners” turned their backs on Rome.
The volume was told by Andrzej Wilk, chief specialist in military aspects of international security at the Polish Center for Eastern Studies.
As previously reported by News Front, Italy has managed to become a world leader in the number of deaths due to coronavirus. Nevertheless, the republic has never been able to wait for support from the EU and NATO. Against this background, the Russian Defense Ministry sent to Italy humanitarian aid, medical equipment and even doctors.
The expert drew attention to two factors that play against the North Atlantic Alliance in the current situation. The first is that Russia demonstrates good preparedness of its army to fight the consequences of the pandemic.
“They also take additional measures to protect against a possible outbreak of a pandemic in their own territory. The comprehensive modernization and expansion of the Russian army, including preparations for operations in the field of weapons of mass destruction and medical safety, has made it possible in a relatively short time to allocate wards in 32 military hospitals potentially designed to receive patients with COVID-19”, – says Andrzej Wilk.
The second negative factor of Russian support for NATO for Italy is that the relationship between Rome and Moscow will not remain at the same level. Moreover, relations between Italy and Western countries will also change, which may even lead to a split of the alliance.
“Russia’s decision to support [Italy] in the fight against the Coronavirus may have consequences for future relations between Moscow and Rome, as well as change Italy’s position on the “Russian threat” to Europe. Actions that demonstrate Russia’s readiness for this type of assistance, as well as agreements on this issue allow us to consider what is happening as another element of Moscow’s efforts to destroy the cohesion of the allies in NATO”, – complained Wilk.
He compared Russia’s actions to Turkey’s earlier sale of its S-400 Triumph anti-aircraft missile systems.