Nato commander warns Russia while Baltic states fear being tested

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 19 Oct, 05:49 · Archive

Nato's top commander has warned that Russian aggression beyond Ukraine could trigger military confrontation, as Baltic nations worry Europe may be walking into a trap.

Nato's top commander issued a stark warning this week, saying that troops will destroy 'anything and everything' if a country attacks Nato territory. US Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich told the Warsaw Security Forum on Monday: 'If someone is foolish enough to attack us, we will fight. We will stop the attack and deny them the ability to achieve their objectives.'

The warning comes at a time of escalating tensions between Europe and Russia, with concerns that Moscow is preparing to expand its aggression beyond Ukraine, possibly through a limited military incursion to test Nato's resolve.

Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have for years warned of Moscow's ambitions. As the Kremlin escalates its aggression, the Baltic states are increasingly worried Europe could be stumbling into a trap. Artis Pabriks, a former defence minister and deputy prime minister of Latvia, said Russia has been using 'strategic communications or cognitive warfare' within Nato to 'depict the Baltic countries as something to which Russia might have more rights than it usually could have'. The Baltic states endured decades of Soviet occupation until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, an event President Vladimir Putin has described as 'the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century'.

How it is being reported

• Trump’s Russia rethink — and Europe’s responseDonald Trump’s latest moves on Russia and Ukraine have alarmed Kyiv and European capitals alike. But rather than scrambling to contain the fallout, EU leaders are keeping their cool. Zoya Sheftalovich and Nick Vinocur explore Europe’s strategy for weathering Trump’s midterm storm — and what it means for Ukraine. Then, France reels from a weekend […]Politico Europe · 19 Oct, 05:30
• ‘Sleepwalking into Putin’s trap’: How Russia is waiting at the gates of EuropeThe UK and much of Western Europe are refusing to heed chilling warnings about Moscow. The Baltics believe we could be stumbling into a trapThe i Paper · 17 Oct, 06:00

In this story: Nato · Russia · Alexus Grynkewich · Estonia · Latvia · Lithuania · Artis Pabriks · Vladimir Putin

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem