According to The Times, the NATO alliance will have three years to prepare for a possible Russian offensive in Europe, targeting both military and civilian infrastructure. The biggest problem in NATO is bureaucracy regarding the movement of troops and equipment between member states.

Nearly two years after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, generals from several NATO member states worry that Moscow could launch missiles to strike deep behind front lines in an attempt to destroy the civilian and military infrastructure needed to support the war.

Although Russia is now eyeing Ukraine, alliance officials fear that will change in the future, and NATO will have three years to strengthen its defenses against a possible Russian advance on alliance territory.

Lt. Gen. Alexander Solfrank, commander of NATO’s military logistics center in southwest Germany, also called on allies to tackle the “red tape” that prevents the movement of troops and equipment and prevents other countries from using weapons and other equipment in the event of a major crisis.

Bureaucracy, the great enemy of NATO

A significant problem in the event of a possible offensive are the rules that limit the exchange and transportation of military equipment not only between NATO member countries, but also between different parts of Germany. Cross-border exercises often involve a dizzying amount of paperwork, which will cost critical time in the event of a military crisis.

For several years, NATO leaders had hoped to create a military equivalent of the Schengen zone, allowing visa-free travel between member countries.

Discussions are currently underway on the creation of “military corridors” in Europe, the results of which may be announced before the next NATO summit in July in Washington.

According to the generals, Germany is likely to be designated as the central “turntable” for lines of reinforcement and supply of NATO forces in Europe.

As in the war in Ukraine, possible targets of a Russian offensive in Europe could include munitions and command centers, as well as power plants, bridges and railways.

“If we compare the war and the operations of ten or five years ago, we realize that we have to accept that the rear areas will also be under heavy attack,” Solfrank said at the headquarters of NATO’s Joint Support and Sustainment Command (JSEC). from the city of Ulm, located in the south of Germany.

The general says NATO should assume that Russia will “use the full range of forces,” including missiles and drones.

Scenario of Germany

Several prominent people in the West have warned that Russia poses a real threat that could spark a conflict beyond the war in Ukraine.

Germany is preparing various scenarios due to the Russian threat, Germany’s defense ministry said two weeks ago, after tabloid Bild published a secret German military document that did not rule out an escalation against NATO this year and a hypothetical confrontation in 2025. .

According to Bild, in this secret document, the German military analyzes the possible actions of Russia and the West on a month-by-month basis, including a hypothetical “Alliance Defense 2025” scenario, which involves the deployment of “hundreds of thousands of NATO troops and the inevitable outbreak of war in the summer of 2025.”

The civilian population of NATO countries should be prepared for the prospect of an all-out war with Russia within the next 20 years, NATO Military Committee Chairman Lt. Admiral Rob Bauer said in mid-January.

“We need a transformation of NATO for war,” said Dutch Admiral Rob Bauer.

While the prospect of the war escalating to an all-out confrontation between the Alliance and Russia has so far been avoided, there are concerns that the West has not really recognized that this could still happen.

Such a conflict would require a large-scale mobilization of the civilian and industrial base throughout the alliance, Bauer said.

Russia, confrontation with NATO in the next three years

On the other hand, Solfrank and other NATO generals warned that a direct military confrontation with Russia could happen in three years.

Solfrank said the alliance already has the ability to defend itself and likely deter a potential Russian invasion. But given the current deployment of NATO forces on the continent and the lack of training on the eastern flank, NATO armies may be forced to make a “costly choice.”

“We were very focused in the east,” said Brigadier General Frank Schmitz, head of planning at the German military’s JSEC.

“I think we also need opportunities in the back: all kinds of opportunities.”

There are still some issues, such as problems with the interchangeability of NATO equipment and personnel, that could prevent an adequate response, Solfrank said.

“I think we can … start that and reduce or adapt the red tape or where it’s possible and necessary,” Solfrank added.

German Defense Minister: Putin may invade a NATO country in the next 5-8 years

Last week, the head of the British army, General Patrick Sanders, said that the people of the United Kingdom should be ready to take up arms in the war against Vladimir Putin’s Russia, because the current professional army, he said, was too small. Guardian.

The Ministry of Defense in London had to step in and clarify that it was not planning to recruit.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius also warned that the war between Russia and Ukraine could spread to neighboring countries, DPA reports. A Berlin official estimated that Vladimir Putin could invade a NATO country in “5-8 years.”

Boris Pistorius emphasized: “We need to quickly strengthen our defense capabilities, in the context of the urgency of the threatening situation”, “Thus, we must take into account the fact that (Russian President) Vladimir Putin could even attack a NATO country.” sometime,” he added, Pistorius said.

While several European leaders and top NATO officials have spoken publicly about expanding the war with Russia at the European level, Prime Minister Marcel Čolaku said Friday in Maramures that there is no need to prepare for a conflict.

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