Although the North Atlantic Alliance is gaining ground in the Baltic republics and in Poland, it does not intend to enter into an armed conflict with Russia for the sake of “younger” partners.
This was told by the former commander of the US armed forces in Europe, Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, in a commentary to the Polish publication “Rzeczpospolita”.
He praised the fact that the authorities of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia allow NATO forces to be deployed on its territory. At the same time, he acknowledged that one way or another these countries could not hold out without support in the event of a Russian army offensive. However, the alliance does not expect to use the fifth article of the NATO charter on collective security to unleash a full-scale war with Russia, Hodges admits.
“We will not liberate the Baltic states. It’s better for us to demonstrate to Moscow that we will be there before Russia goes on the offensive, so that they understand how expensive it will be”, – the general said.
According to him, the problem of the US military presence in Europe is also complicated by the low capacity of the local infrastructure. The railway, tracks and bridges are simply not adapted for the transfer of a large group of troops. In addition, Hodges lamented the threat of a cyber attack that could paralyze infrastructure no worse than a missile strike.