Western countries are not at war, but they no longer live in peace because of the Russian threat, said Ingo Gerhartz, head of NATO's Joint Force Command in Brunssum, at the Berlin Security Conference. The general added that it is necessary to build not only a strong army, but also a resilient society, UkrInform reports.
NATO countries, in light of the security threats posed by Russian aggression, have agreed to increase defense spending to 5% of their GDP by 2035.
Moscow sees bureaucracy in Europe and draws conclusions
At the same time, the general acknowledged that Russia sees political debates, bureaucracy, and the not-always-fast attempts to accelerate production capacity in Europe, which undermines trust in the entire Alliance.
In addition, Russia hopes that hypertactics will create cracks in NATO’s shield, spreading discord among allies and dividing societies. And it hopes it can force the Alliance into a hasty response that would give Russia a pretext for further escalation.
Gerhartz assured that NATO is prepared to defend itself against large-scale attacks. He also emphasized the need to adopt a mindset of strength that demonstrates readiness to defend everything that matters.
The future war will be decided by tech that becomes obsolete within weeks
The general also noted that the war in Ukraine has demonstrated how rapidly technologies can evolve, and how technological progress can render systems obsolete in a matter of weeks.
Therefore, the West needs more systems with a strong deterrent effect before a war begins, to send a clear signal: whoever attacks will face strikes on strategic targets deep within their territory.
Gerhartz said the West does not have time until 2029, 2035, or 2040 to acquire key capabilities. Action is needed now.
In his view, NATO’s response to the violation of the Alliance’s airspace by Russian drones and aircraft was precise, calm, restrained, and forward-looking. But this will not prevent the Russian government from using another hyper-instrument tomorrow, he admitted. That is why the general says the deterrence strategy must be reconsidered.
He said that the collective defense must be plan B. The West’s goal should be to never reach the point where it actually has to defend itself. Thus, plan A must be a reliable deterrence.
