NATO Countries Agree on Plans in Case of Russia’s Attack

NATO countries on Monday, a day before the official start of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit in Vilnius, agreed on regional defense plans in case of a hypothetical Russian attack. Reuters and dpa reported, citing sources. The plans, which are still to be approved at the NATO summit in Vilnius, which opens today, detail how the bloc’s critical territories should be protected by deterrents and defended in emergencies. It also defines what military capabilities are necessary. In addition to land, air and naval forces, cyber and space forces are also included, dpa reported. NATO countries also plan to increase military budgets, build up weapons and support weaker countries. According to the NATO leadership, each member state should increase its military budget to at least 2% of GDP. As the organization notes, the implementation of this plan may take several years. At the same time, they emphasize, the entire Alliance should be ready for an immediate response to possible aggression. Such plans have been agreed for the first time since the end of the Cold War between the USSR and the West. According to Reuters, the adoption of these plans was blocked by Turkey, explaining the geographical issues of places such as Cyprus, with which Ankara has territorial disputes. A diplomat speaking to the agency notified that Turkey had to compromise and cancel the tie-up. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, NATO identified Russia as the “principal security threat” in its strategic plan. In this regard, at last year’s NATO summit in Madrid, member states decided to strengthen NATO’s eastern flank by increasing contingents in Central European countries. It was proposed to replace the battalion combat groups deployed there by larger military units – brigades. In addition, it was planned to increase the NATO Response Force from 40,000 to 300,000. It consists of ground, air and maritime units and is designed to be deployed within days from the place of permanent deployment to the conflict area.