World

NATO Commander Warns of Full‑Scale Response to Any Attack

By Al Jazeera Staff

NATO’s top commander, US Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich, told the Warsaw Security Forum on Monday that the alliance would destroy “anything and everything” if an attack were launched against it. He said NATO would block an initial strike, blunt any continued assault, and, if necessary, break the enemy’s forces and the operational war‑fighting system arrayed against the alliance. Grynkewich emphasized that NATO is a defensive alliance and that he does not believe a conflict is imminent or inevitable, but that the best way to preserve peace is to prepare for war and keep open lines of communication to resolve misunderstandings.

European officials have raised concerns about a potential Russian attack amid the war in Ukraine. European governments accuse Moscow of increasing sabotage, drone incursions and cyberattacks against them, while Russia warned last month it could use nuclear weapons if NATO cut off its Baltic Kaliningrad exclave, where it has a major military outpost. NATO’s 10‑year strategy, adopted in 2022, identifies Russia as the alliance’s most significant security threat.

Grynkewich said NATO would make any attack against an ally “utterly futile,” attacking not only the force itself but also everything that supports, sustains and controls it. He noted that the alliance’s response would not be limited to the initial attackers.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said this month that Russia had no plans to attack any European country and wanted to coexist peacefully, but European leaders remain unconvinced, citing similar statements before Russia’s 2022 full‑scale invasion of Ukraine. Moscow has repeatedly denied involvement in sabotage and other hybrid operations.

Grynkewich explained that he spoke publicly about NATO’s plans because recent acts of sabotage and arson had made people around the alliance nervous. “What I want to do is assure the one billion citizens of our alliance that we’ve got this. We know what we need to do. We know how we would do it,” he said. He also downplayed concerns about Washington’s commitment to the alliance, citing President Donald Trump’s reception at a NATO summit in Ankara in July, saying, “I was in the room and I felt the love.”