General Ingo Gerhartz during a visit to the Air Defender 2023 military exercises in Jagel, Germany, on June 16, 2023. Getty Images/Morris MacMatzen
This is stated by the commander of NATO’s Allied Command Operations on the eastern flank, German General Ingo Gerhartz, who occasionally reports more Ukrinform
Russia is increasingly provoking NATO, not crossing the threshold of Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty on collective defense, prompting the bloc to a rushed response that gives Moscow a pretext for further escalation. This view was expressed by the commander of the Allied Forces NATO on the Eastern Flank, German General Ingo Gerhartz, at the Berlin Security Conference on November 18, according to Ukrinform.
Gerhartz noted that the Russian authorities are increasingly using “hypertactics,” because they know that NATO “is well-versed in conventional defense and finds it harder to respond to activity in the so-called gray zone”.
“Russia hopes that hypertactics will create cracks in NATO’s shield, that it will sow discord among our allies and divide our societies. And they hope that they will be able to force us into a hasty response, which would provide a pretext for further escalation by Russia. We cannot allow this”
Deterrence Measures and Limits of Action
Gerhartz noted that deterrence measures did not prevent Russia from expanding the boundaries that are “slightly below Article 5” of collective defense. According to him, this is evidenced by regular provocations at the borders of Alliance member countries, sabotage of infrastructure on land and underwater, cyberattacks on facilities, jamming of navigation systems, and disinformation campaigns. The intensity of such actions is increasing, and the intervals between them are becoming shorter. In this context, the Kremlin, in his assessment, needs a rethink of the deterrence approach.
“But collective defense, as we all know, must be Plan B. Our aim should be to never reach the moment when we would have to defend ourselves. So our Plan A should be reliable deterrence”
The general asserts that the Alliance is ready to repel the scale of attacks. In the event of Article 5 invocation, the Allied Forces Command would lead NATO units on land, in the air, at sea, in cyberspace, and even in space. His area of responsibility covers the Eastern Flank and stretches from the Alps to northern Europe.
Along with this, he stressed that the Russian government sees political debates and bureaucracy, and also does not always manage to accelerate production capacity in Europe from bloc member states. In this context, the general expressed hope for Germany’s role as a NATO leader and a truly responsible partner in the alliance community.
Also, Gerhartz noted that the Alliance needs more armaments with a strong deterrent effect even before the start of contemporary armed actions. He spoke about capabilities on land, at sea, and in the air as a clear signal to the adversary: any attack will be met with strikes against strategic targets deep in its territory, which should make any opponent think twice.
Meanwhile, the United States Ambassador to NATO, Matthew Vitaker, urged European allies to act more decisively against Russia and to continue using blocked Russian assets to finance Ukraine’s security and defense needs.
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