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☆ Front-line NATO allies worry they could be next after Russia's invasion of Ukraine and are getting ready for a fight
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Sinéad Baker | Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

These countries along the military alliance's front line are now scrambling to make sure they're protected should the Russian military ever come knocking. "There is an imminent need of a stronger NATO presence in our region," Estonia's Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said. For nearly 14 months, the Russian military has been bogged down by its grinding war in Ukraine. More boots on the groundSome leaders in the Baltic countries have said that they ultimately want to host more NATO troops, including permanent brigades, in the years to come. So as the threat landscape continues to shift, the Baltic defense has adapted along with it, Townsend said.

☆ NATO's chief is talking openly about alliance membership for Ukraine as Putin's war continues to shoot Russia in the foot
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Ukraine has long sought NATO membership, something Vladimir Putin deeply opposes. Ukraine has long sought NATO membership. As early as April 2008, NATO said it "welcomed" aspirations from Ukraine and Georgia — the latter was attacked by Russia later that year — to join the military alliance. Finland officially became the 31st member of the military alliance earlier this month, a huge setback for Putin. in a Friday tweet that included a link to a media report about Stoltenberg telling Zelenskyy Ukraine belongs in NATO.

☆ Macron: France's 'tone deaf' president faces backlash over Taiwan comments
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Luke Mcgee | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

In it, he said that Europe must not become “just America’s followers” when asked about the prospect of China invading Taiwan. One said that Macron is “simply tone deaf to everything happening in the world. They were surprised to see Macron’s comments so soon after that meeting. For all that Macron’s comments could be put down to a president under pressure at home doing things on the world stage to create a distraction, his comments on Taiwan have done real damage to the fragile transatlantic relationship. It might not have been his intention, but Macron’s comments have come at a yet unknown cost.

☆ NATO's newest member means Russia's 'unsinkable aircraft carrier' will be even more isolated
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Constantine Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Finland also extends NATO's border along the Baltic Sea, which has been called a "NATO lake." That further isolates Russia's Kaliningrad region, which is surrounded by NATO member countries. Kaliningrad is a major military outpost, hosting Russia's Baltic Fleet and other forces, and has been called an "unsinkable aircraft carrier" that allows Moscow to project power deep into NATO and EU territory. However, some Baltic Fleet units were redeployed to Ukraine where they have reportedly suffered very high casualties. Russia's Baltic Fleet is based in Baltiysk and is composed of warships — mostly corvettes and a number of support ships — infantry and armored units, and aviation and air-defense forces.

☆ Turkey’s Parliament Ratifies Finland’s NATO Membership Bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Jared Malsin | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

ISTANBUL—The Turkish parliament on Thursday ratified Finland’s entrance into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, removing the last obstacle to a historic expansion of the alliance in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Finland’s inclusion would add more than 800 miles to NATO’s border with Russia and bring to the alliance one of Europe’s best-defended and best-armed countries. Finland ended its decades-old policy of managing its contentious relationship with Russia in reaction to the assault on Ukraine, which heightened the perceived risk of Russian threats to broader European security.

☆ In Beijing, Spanish PM urges Xi to speak with Ukraine's Zelenskiy
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Eduardo Baptista | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Sanchez told a news conference in Beijing he had informed Xi, who visited Moscow on March 20-21, that Spain supported the proposals made by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. They include a demand to restore Ukraine's territory to the status quo before Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea. "I transmitted our concern over the illegal invasion of Ukraine," Sanchez said, adding that he "encouraged Xi to talk to President Zelenskiy". Last month, Beijing put forward its own 12-point peace plan and called for a comprehensive ceasefire in the conflict. Sanchez urged China to seek a more balanced economic relationship with Spain and called for greater transparency.

☆ Turkish parliament ratifies Finland's NATO accession as Sweden kept waiting
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The Turkish parliament was the last among the 30 members of the alliance to ratify Finland's membership after Hungary's legislature approved a similar bill earlier this week. Finland and Sweden asked to join NATO last year in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. "NATO membership will strengthen Finland's security and improve stability and security in the Baltic Sea region and Northern Europe," the Finnish government said in a statement following the Turkish parliament vote. Twe Turkish parliament's ratification of Finland's NATO membership is set to be approved by President Tayyip Erdogan and then published in the country's Official Gazette. When Finland's instrument of accession document reaches the U.S. State Department, the Nordic country will formally become a NATO member.

☆ How Ukraine's closest allies turned the tide on sending advanced tanks, and could do the same for military jets
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Their success, an expert told Insider, shows how Europe's balance of power has shifted eastwards since Russia's invasion in February 2022. Sergei Grits/APEstonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu told Insider that Ukraine's allies had been "too slow" when deciding to send weapons to Ukraine. AP Photo/Martin Meissner, FileReinsalu, Estonia's foreign minister, told Insider that he had repeatedly engaged with his German counterpart about the decision. Kallas and Šimonytė, the two prime ministers, both told Insider that they support Ukraine getting military jets. "Ordinarily, on less critical matters, peer pressure happens but the public sees very little of it or none of it," he told Insider.

☆ NATO, world leaders condemn Russia's 'dangerous and irresponsible' nuclear rhetoric
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Ashley Capoot | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

NATO condemned Russia's "dangerous and irresponsible" nuclear rhetoric Sunday after President Vladimir Putin shared plans to station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. The NATO spokesperson added that there have not been changes in Russia's nuclear posture that have caused NATO to adjust its own. He added that Putin has not suggested any intention to use nuclear weapons, "period," but that the U.S. is continuing to monitor the situation closely. He called Russia's announcement an "irresponsible escalation" and a threat to European security. "Making a statement about tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, he admits that he is afraid of losing & all he can do is scare with tactics," he wrote.

☆ US urges Turkey to quickly ratify Sweden's NATO bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON, March 17 (Reuters) - The United States welcomed Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's announcement on Friday that the country's parliament will begin ratifying Finland's NATO bid, and encouraged Turkey to quickly ratify Sweden's accession into the military alliance as well. "Sweden and Finland are both strong, capable partners that share NATO’s values and will strengthen the Alliance and contribute to European security. The United States believes that both countries should become members of NATO as soon as possible," White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in a statement. Reporting by Costas Pitas and Rami Ayyub; editing by Paul GrantOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Once the party of foreign policy "hawks," Republicans have increasingly cooled on foreign entanglements and military support for allies, particularly after Trump took office in 2016. Republican senators Marco Rubio, who is from DeSantis' home state, and Lindsey Graham, both former presidential candidates, criticized isolationists within their party. "People care about foreign policy, but I think it's kind of mixed on Ukraine funding," said Trudy Caviness, a member of the Iowa Republican State Central Committee. By embracing Trump's hands-off brand of foreign policy, DeSantis risks turning off some of the white-collar Republicans that are most eager to move on from the former president. That will give the eventual winner of the Republican nomination significant power to shape the party's foreign policy preferences going forward.

☆ Putin's war in Ukraine is endangering Russia's centuries of great-power status
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Robert Farley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

And yet Russian power and influence have waned in the past; the first 20 years of the 20th century represented a nadir in Russian power, as the Russian Empire lost most of its western territories after suffering a series of defeats at the hands of Japan, Germany, and Poland. Russian soldiers in World War II uniforms parade at Dvortsovaya Square in St. Petersburg in January 2019. AP Photo/Dmitri LovetskyBy virtue of its size and legacy, Russia is undoubtedly an important military power. Even as Russia has struggled mightily to impose its will upon Ukraine, nuclear weapons have ensured that NATO stays on the sidelines. Thomson ReutersBut is Russia a great power if it can't even crush its neighbor without help from China?

☆ The US Air Force is finally getting rid of its A-10s, and its focus may be straying from the Warthog's unique mission
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Constantine Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Those retirements would shrink the Air Force's A-10 fleet to 260 aircraft, and Air Force leaders plan to continue decommissioning A-10s in the years ahead. Not so closeUS Air Force joint terminal attack controllers during a close air support training with an A-10 in Nevada in September 2011. Michael HolzworthCurrent and former Air Force officials have said that the F-35 would take over the A-10's mission after the Warthog left the fleet. So it will perform the mission very differently," said Kendall, who is now the Air Force's top civilian official. Those skills "are perishable," Boeding added, "and the stakes are too high to not train dedicated crews (ground and air) in purpose build close air support aircraft."

☆ Lithuania's prime minister says Ukrainians should get all the weapons they want because they are dying for Europe's safety: 'We're just losing some money'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Sinéad Baker | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Ukrainians are dying to help protect European security, Lithuania's prime minister told Insider. That's why Ukraine should get the weapons it needs, including offensive weapons, she said. I say we are losing, [but] I think we are investing in a way, investing into our security," she said. Lithuania was sending Ukraine weapons even before Russia's invasion began last February, at a time when Ukraine was fighting Russian-backed separatists in its east. "It's sort of a cliche to say that Ukrainians are fighting this war for all of us," she added.

He predicted that tough negotiations with Ukraine and the West would follow that would culminate in "some kind of agreement." To push back the borders that threaten our country as far as possible, even if they are the borders of Poland," said Medvedev. Poland shares long eastern borders with Ukraine and with Russia's ally Belarus, and a frontier of some 200 km (125 miles) in its northeastern corner with the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad. Any encroachment on Poland's borders would bring Russia for the first time into direct conflict with NATO. U.S. President Joe Biden pledged in a speech in Warsaw this week to defend "every inch" of NATO territory if it was attacked.

☆ Swedish Military Intelligence says threat from Russia has increased
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

STOCKHOLM, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Russia poses a clear military threat in Sweden's immediate area but its forces are largely tied up in the war in Ukraine, the Swedish Military Intelligence and Security Service (MUST) said on Monday. "The European Security Order as we know it has ceased to exist...and with that the risks for Swedish security have also increased," Lena Hallin, head of MUST, told a news conference. Hallin also said she expected Russia to strengthen its military capability in Sweden's immediate area when it was possible, in response to Sweden and Finland applying for NATO membership. She said that MUST judged that Russia wants to avoid current tensions escalating into an armed conflict with NATO. "But there is considerable uncertainty, mainly relating to the Russian leaderships' willingness to take high risks," she said, adding that the high level of tension raised risks that accident or misjudgment could lead to conflict.

☆ One year on, Russia's war in Ukraine ramps up fears over Europe's next security 'soft spot'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, North Macedonia President Stevo Pendarovski said that, aside from Kyiv, he believed that the Western Balkan region was the "soft spot" of Europe's security architecture. For sure, the Western Balkans is a second battleground for Russia in terms of foreign interference and information manipulation. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesĆerimagić said Russia's war in Ukraine provides Europe with a clear opportunity to cement stability in the Western Balkans. "For sure, the Western Balkans is a second battleground for Russia in terms of foreign interference and information manipulation. watch nowNorth Macedonia's Pendarovski last month described the U.S. as a "key player" in supporting Western Balkan countries through Russia's war in Ukraine.

☆ Rising tensions with Russia have NATO militaries worried about the revival of a Cold War-era submarine threat
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Constantine Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

A top concern is that those subs could be used to attack or interfere with undersea cables and pipelines. Ander Gillenea/AFP/Getty ImagesConcern about Russia's expanding underwater capabilities and the danger they pose to critical underwater infrastructure has risen since Russia seized Crimea in 2014. Since then, Russian submarines have deployed more often and for longer and their activity close to critical undersea infrastructure has increased. Recent Russian submarine activity does suggest an increasing focus on being able to get into the Atlantic and closer to the US East Coast. At a Senate hearing in February 2020, the head of US European Command was asked if US forces have "sufficient visibility" on Russian submarines in the Atlantic.

[1/2] U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris is welcomed at Munich's airport by Bavarian state premier Markus Soeder before heading to the venue of this year's Security Conference in Munich, Germany, February 16, 2023. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris are among many top officials attending the Munich Security Conference, a major annual global gathering focused on defence and diplomacy. As Russian troops massed on Ukraine's borders, Western leaders in Munich urged President Vladimir Putin not to invade and warned of dire consequences if he did so. Delegates will also discuss the far-reaching global impact of the war, on issues ranging from energy supply to food prices. This year, Russian leaders will be notable by their absence.

☆ Invited by Russia, Roger Waters tells UN: Ukraine invasion illegal
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Michelle Nichols | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ambassador Ferit Hoxha told the 15-member Security Council. Soon after Moscow's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, Russia introduced tough new laws on spreading "misinformation" about the war or discrediting the Russian army. Russia called the Security Council meeting on Wednesday to discuss the delivery of weapons to Ukraine and asked Waters to brief. While Waters condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine as illegal, he also said it "was not unprovoked" and he also condemned "the provocateurs in the strongest possible terms." "The only sensible course of action today is to call for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine," Waters saidUkraine's U.N.

[1/2] Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy greets U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris during a joint meeting of U.S. Congress in the House Chamber of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, U.S., December 21, 2022. REUTERS/Jonathan ErnstWASHINGTON, Feb 6 (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to discuss Washington's future support for Ukraine when she travels to a major European security conference in Germany next week, as Russia's invasion nears the one-year mark. Harris will travel to Munich, Germany, from Feb. 16 to 18 to attend the Munich Security Conference as Ukraine, still waiting on promised longer-range Western missiles and battle tanks, readies itself for a new Russian offensive that could begin next week. Support for Ukraine has included $29.3 billion worth of pledged security assistance and an unprecedented use of economic sanctions, including an oil price cap, which have severely impacted Moscow. Harris met with and briefed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy at last year's conference, which was held just days before Russia's Feb. 24, 2022, invasion of Ukraine.

☆ Russia's war in Ukraine backfired by uniting NATO, even as cracks emerged over nearly a year of fighting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Jake Epstein | John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

When Putin invaded Ukraine, he miscalculated the response from Western countries. NATO has been largely united in its response to Russia's war, consistently providing Kyiv with military aid. Russian President Vladimir Putin has effectively succeeded in remaking the Western bloc, Araud said, adding that "the Western alliance is back." After the Soviet Union collapsed, both Finland and Sweden became NATO partner countries but stopped short of pursuing full membership. Even under the intense pressure of war, the alliance is "holding the way that they have in the past," he said.

☆ A decade of quiet preparations helped Ukraine turn the tables on Russia's bigger, better-armed military, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( Constantine Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Following Russia's 2014 attack, Ukraine's military set out to improve and modernize its forces. In the years that followed, Ukraine's military underwent a period of preparation that helped it blunt the full-scale invasion that Russia launched in February 2022. Training for artillery troops was also intensified. However, Russia's tanks still outnumbered Ukraine's nearly four to one when the invasion started. Prior to 2022, Ukraine's military had struggled to retain troops, but high turnover during those years meant Ukraine had a large pool of civilians with military training.

☆ For the 2nd year in a row, Iran is sailing its biggest warship around the world to show off its growing navy
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( Constantine Atlamazoglou | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Iranian warships left Iran in September on what one official said was a journey around the world. Visiting far off landsIranian navy Makran near the Strait of Hormuz in May 2021. They have repeatedly seized Iranian arms shipments bound for Yemen and have often had tense encounters with Iranian warships. Iran has also started an indigenous shipbuilding program to grow its navy, which is designed to defend the Persian Gulf. "Yet the focus of Iran will continue to be the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, and the Indian ocean.

“There have been about 1,300 Russian tank losses … so the actual numbers of new tanks [for Ukraine] in a military sense are not that significant. There’s a lot of Ukraine and 20, 30, 40 tanks does not go that far,” said Ronald Ti, an expert in military logistics at King’s College, London. Nevertheless, the move to create a new “tank coalition,” as some officials called it, has been widely welcomed in Ukraine. Zelenskyy has said Ukraine requires around 300 tanks in order to successfully defend its territory from an expected Russian spring offensive, and to begin winning back territory ceded to Moscow since the invasion began last February. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, seen in Berlin on Wednesday, has faced prolonged criticism for a reluctance to send military equipment to Ukraine.

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