Russia is now bracing for a bigger war against the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the West, according to Europe's defense chief.
Stefano Sannino, the secretary general of the European Union's External Action Service, gave this alarming warning following the announcement of more NATO nations that they're willing to send more tanks and arms to help Ukraine thwart the Russian invasion.
"Russia is now locked in a war against NATO and the West," said Sannino, suggesting that Russian President Vladimir Putin is now "moving the war into a different stage." That stage can include the involvement of non-military targets and the deployment and possible use of nuclear weapons. (Related: Russia warns WWIII is all but GUARANTEED if Ukraine’s Western allies continue to meddle in ongoing conflict.)
Canada recently became the 12th country to commit to sending tanks to Ukraine. Poland had earlier pledged to deliver 60 more tanks to the 14 it has already committed to the joint effort to halt the Russian advance. Spain and Norway are expected to follow suit and announce how many Leopard 2 they will send.
The United States had committed to sending 31 M1 Abrams tanks; Germany 14 of its Leopard 2 A6 tanks; and Great Britain 14 Challenger tanks – all of which are deemed superior to Russia's outdated T-72 tanks.
French President Emmanuel Macron has also asked his defense minister to consider sending its Leclerc battle tanks to Kyiv.
Although it has no tanks to offer, Belgium committed to a new package of military aid consisting of cash, missiles, machine guns and armored vehicles.
Clearly, the U.S. and these NATO members are disregarding the signs coming out of the Kremlin that it is bent on sending Ukraine to its knees regardless of the consequences.
In April 2022, Russia test-launched the dreaded Sarmat "Satan II" missile, sparking the threat of nuclear Armageddon.
Even before its encroachment into the Ukraine territory in February 2022, Russia flaunted its military capability when it test-launched the fearsome Zircon (3M22) hypersonic missile from the Admiral Gorshkov warship in January 2020. Zircon is considered unstoppable because of its 9 Mach speed and reported coverage distance of 1,500 kilometers (932 miles).
Ukraine eyeing Western fourth-generation fighter jets
In the wake of the Russian threats, Ukraine is also seeking Western fourth-generation fighter jets, such as the US F-16, although this remains an unlikely prospect.
According to Sannino, Ukraine’s allies had been forced to upgrade their military support to Kyiv in response to Moscow shifting the focus of the war to the West. "I think that this latest development in terms of armed supply is just an evolution of the situation and of the way Russia has started moving the war into a different stage," Sannino said.
Russia intensified its attacks on the eastern part of the Donbas region in an attempt to break through Ukraine's front flanks before the arrival of Western tanks.
Apart from the ground movements of its troops, Russia also made indiscriminate bomb attacks on civilians and cities, conducting a total of 37 airstrikes. Although 47 of the 59 missiles were intercepted, 11 people were killed in explosions caused by those that went through.
Russia, for its part, lambasted U.S. President Joe Biden for dumping weapons into Ukraine, instead of instigating a ceasefire.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the promised delivery of Western tanks to Ukraine was evidence of the growing "direct involvement" of the United States and Europe in the ongoing armed conflict.
"We categorically disagree with this, and in Moscow everything [they're doing] is seen as direct involvement. We see that this is growing," said Peskov, who at a press conference on January 9 claimed that the new military supplies will only prolong the suffering of the Ukrainian people as they "are not capable of stopping us from achieving the goals of the special military operation."
North Korea, which is being accused by Washington of supplying ammunition to Russian forces, also slammed the decision by the U.S. to supply Ukraine with tanks, accusing Washington of escalating a "proxy war" strategy aimed at destroying Moscow.
Taking a different stand from its NATO allies, Hungary, through its Prime Minister Viktor Oban, suggested Western countries have "drifted" into becoming active participants in the conflict. Orban said the West should pursue a ceasefire and broker a peace talk instead of boosting Ukraine's war chest.
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Watch the video below showing NATO forces on high alert in response to the growing Russian threat in the region.
This video is from the Chinese taking down EVIL CCP channel on Brighteon.com.
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