Analyst Stefetz: Moscow feels cornered and cannot but respond to NATO
Photo: Ints Kalnins / Reuters
The statements made by Russian President Vladimir Putin indicate that Moscow feels cornered and cannot but respond to the actions of the United States and its NATO allies. This opinion was shared by military analyst Jaroslav Stefets to the Czech edition of Parlamentní listy.
The specialist noted that for the first time the world was so close to war since the Caribbean crisis of 1962. According to him, the West has already exhausted all the possibilities to humiliate Russia and decided to go for broke. “If you want to tease a [Russian] bear, first make sure you have somewhere to run,” advised Stefetz.
The analyst also pointed to the increased activity of NATO near the borders of Russia. According to him, the deployment of American missile defense systems near Russian borders deprives Moscow of the ability to proactively respond to threats. At the same time, a situation is created in which Russia may be attacked because of a provocation, with the help of which it will be presented as an aggressor and an invader.
Of particular concern is the large number of US and NATO military personnel, advisers and other specialists in Ukraine, which also increases the risk of provocations – whether it be accusations of the use of chemical weapons or their use itself, as well as actions that may lead to the killing of NATO soldiers or American instructors … “Everything will be arranged as if Russia attacked the troops of the alliance. Martial law will be declared and Europe could very quickly turn into a battlefield, ”Stefetz warned.
On December 26, Putin said that the Russian response to the expansion of the North Atlantic alliance could be very different, but depend on what proposals Russian military experts make. At the same time, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called NATO expansion a matter of life and death for Moscow.
