NATO general warns of serious strategy gaps on Eastern front
General Alexander Sollfrank, the head of NATO's Joint Support and Enabling Command (JSEC), highlights the gaps and shortcomings in the strategy to repel an attack from Russia on NATO's eastern flanks, stressing the need to prepare for such a possibility. According to the military officer, without investment in the road infrastructure of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Poland, there is no readiness to defend against the enemy.
7:46 AM EDT, September 30, 2024
A NATO command expert warns that the situation is serious. There is still no highway or fast rail connection between the individual Baltic states.
As explained by General Alexander Sollfrank in an interview with Reuters, it is high time for the Atlantic alliance to implement procedures and technical capabilities for the rapid transfer of heavy weaponry and ammunition. After NATO's enlargement, the eastern border is approximately 2,485 miles, making troop mobility crucial for defense against a potential hostile attack from Russia.
NATO considers war scenarios. What if the Russians strike the Baltic countries?
According to the military officer, the Baltic states have gained support west of their maritime borders after the accession of Sweden and Finland. However, there is still no guarantee against a potential blitz attack from the Kremlin on Lithuania, Latvia, or Estonia.
Therefore, questions are being raised in these countries about the Allied forces' strategy in such a scenario. Each of these countries' military potential is too small to independently stop a Russian invasion.
A frequently considered scenario involves a simultaneous strike by Russian forces on Lithuania from the Kaliningrad Oblast and Belarus. This could result in cutting off the Baltic states from Poland.
The last section of the Via Baltica in Poland has just been completed. This allows unobstructed access from Western Europe to the Polish-Lithuanian border in Budzisko, but moving further east may already be more difficult.
For six years, driving on the highway from Marijampolė to Kaunas has been possible. Construction of the highway to the Latvian border is just about to begin.
Rail could help in the rapid transfer of NATO troops. But the rail connection is also not perfect. European tracks extend only from Poland to Kaunas. Beyond that, the old infrastructure inherited from the USSR remains.
A new rail infrastructure project, Rail Baltica, is planned. It is to be a high-speed route between Warsaw and Helsinki. However, the project has been delayed by at least five years. The reasons for these delays include rising investment costs and recent high inflation.
