NATO believes that Russia considers using tactical nuclear weapons as a way of waging a war. General Hans-Lothar Domröse, NATO Commander of the Brunssum Allied Joint Force Command, said he sees a threat in Russia’s actions and descried Russian President Vladimir Putin as a dangerous “gambler.”
General Hans-Lothar Domröse claims that the alliance is concerned over the possibility of Russia’s use of nuclear weapons.
“The Russians consider it possible to use tactical nuclear weapons as a way of waging a war. We [NATO] – do not,” the General said in an interview with German magazine Focus Online.
Hans-Lothar Domröse has also revealed what NATO thinks of Putin. According to him, Putin is a “tough-minded, forward-thinking politician who is capable of foreseeing the situation.”
The general added that Russian president is a dangerous “gambler,” but did not go into details.
“He is not crazy. He is a gambler. And it can be dangerous,” the general said.
However, according to the general, NATO does not view Russia as its enemy, rather as a potential threat. “I think it must be pointed out that in NATO, on one is interested in waging a war. However, we will protect our population. I hope that president Putin understands that. That is the reason why I sleep calmly,” he said.
Soros: “The threat of world war becomes real”
Meanwhile, billionaire investor George Soros, speaking at The World Bank’s Bretton Woods conference, said that if the US does not make “major concessions” to allow China’s currency join the IMF’s basket of currencies, “there is a real danger China will align itself with Russia politically and militarily, and then the threat of world war becomes real.”
Therefore, according to Soros, there is a high possibility of another world war.
“If there is conflict between China and a military ally of the United States, like Japan, then it is not an exaggeration to say that we are on the threshold of a third world war,” Soros said.
In May, US Air Force General Philip Breedlove accused Russia of making “irresponsible” nuclear threats.
Breedlove commented the March statements made by Putin, who admitted in the film ‘Crimea: The Way Back Home’ that the Kremlin was ready to put its nuclear weapons on full alert during the Crimean events in 2014.
US Air Force General called it an “irresponsible statement coming from a nuclear power.”
General Breedlove also expressed his and NATO’s concern over Russia’s recent stepped up offensive on some areas of eastern Ukraine despite the fragile Minsk ceasefire agreement.
Meanwhile, NATO’s General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg also paid attention to Russia’s leadership rhetoric about nuclear weapons. Stoltenberg was concerned over Putin’s words that said Russia was ready to use its nuclear power. Stoltenberg also pointed out that NATO missile defense system is not targeting Russia, and that NATO is not eager to have a confrontation against Moscow.
However, Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the US actions might prompt Russia to build up its nuclear arsenal.
The Director of Non-proliferation and Control of Weapons Department of Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mikhail Ulianov, said during the review conference dedicated to Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, that the US actions might push Russia to make a decision of building up its nuclear arsenal.
However, he immediately specified that Russia is not going to do it yet.
Russia prepares for an all-out war against the US
If Soros’ predictions are right, then Russia is already preparing for an all-out war against the US.
Tanks with armored vehicles on the Armata and Bumerang combat platforms, air defense missile batteries as well as other military hardware will soon be deployed in Russia’s Arctic regions.
It was announced Tuesday by the Russian Southern Military District’s press service.
The drills are set to feature the T-14 Armata cutting-edge main battle tank, which made its official first appearance during the May 9 Victory Day parade in Moscow. The military exercises lasting four days were ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday. This is Russia’s third recent drills and will feature 12,000 troops, 250 aircraft and nearly 700 artillery pieces and other heavy weaponry. This sudden launching of the Kremlin’s military drills is believed to be the Russia’s response to NATO’s military exercises that run from May 25 to 5 June.
NATO’s General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg then urged Russia to not carry out surprise military drills.
“We urge Russia not to…do these kinds of snap exercises. Every nation has the right to exercise its forces, also Russia, but they should do it in a more transparent and predictable way to avoid any misunderstandings,” Stoltenberg said in an interview with CBS.
Putin tests the US readiness for a confrontation
Analysts believe that this is Putin’s way to test NATO and the US readiness for a confrontation. During the past couple of months, Russia has carried out several surprise large-scale military drills.
Besides, Russia warplanes have repeatedly appeared at the coasts of European countries with their transmitter-receivers turned off.
It is also believed that there was a Russian submarine in the territorial waters of Sweden in 2014. All these threatening actions are accompanied with increasing intensity of shelling in eastern Ukraine.
Therefore, Soros’ claims about the possibility of another war can become reality. And it’s not about whether Russia and China are going to team up to withstand the West, it’s about how many western countries the US could muster up for a conflict against Russia-China.
What especially doesn’t look promising for the US’ chances is that the NATO’s leadership is not even successful in persuading its members to spend 2% of their GDP on defense.
What about going into a large-scale conflict together? Will NATO be able to persuade its members to not run for the hills?
