“The Old Continent is in a state of emergency,” Anders Fogh Rasmussen emphasized in an interview with an Italian newspaper. The former Secretary General of the Alliance warned Europe about the possibility of a Russian attack on one of the NATO member states.
On the eve of the Munich Security Conference, the Italian daily La Repubblica published an interview with the former NATO Secretary General. In the interview, Anders Fogh Rasmussen assessed that Russia would attack one of NATO’s countries. He also stated that automobile factories in Alliance member states should begin producing military vehicles. He stressed that “the Old Continent is in a state of emergency.”
“Our intelligence services tell us that Putin will be capable of attacking a NATO country before the end of the decade, and in my view, even sooner. We have conducted exercises based on a scenario in which Moscow declares a state of emergency in Kaliningrad and demands access through a corridor in Lithuania. Vilnius refuses, Putin invades, and the United States does not intervene because it is (the situation in Kaliningrad – ed.) considered a humanitarian issue. The attack could happen very quickly. Europe is not prepared, and we have no guarantee of assistance from the United States. That is why I agree with French President Macron when he says that we are facing a security threat,”
Rasmussen said.
Europe Must Prepare
He added: “We must put our economies on a war footing and strengthen our autonomy from Washington. Automotive companies should begin producing military vehicles.”
Speaking about the war in Ukraine, the former NATO chief assessed that, contrary to expectations expressed by President Trump, an agreement will not be reached by June because Vladimir Putin does not want one. “As long as he believes he can win on the battlefield, he will have no motivation to engage in constructive peace negotiations. His objective is not only territory, but also to reduce Ukraine to the status of a vassal state,” Fogh Rasmussen noted.
Asked whether NATO could survive if Trump did not come to Europe’s aid, he replied:
“No. If Article 5 is not invoked in the event of aggression, NATO is dead.”