NATO’s New Defense Plan Includes Strikes Deep Into Russia

NATO has been developing defense strategies that involve launching attacks deep into Russian territory, should Moscow launch an offensive against alliance territory. The strategy, devised by U.S. Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, focuses on targeting bases, supply networks, and industrial facilities that support an invasion. This approach is based on the lessons learned from Russia's ongoing conflict with Ukraine, which highlights the importance of disrupting the military system behind advancing troops, according to The Wall Street Journal.

For decades, European defense plans have centered on preventing Soviet or Russian forces from advancing across NATO borders once they have crossed. However, NATO strategists now believe this is no longer sufficient. Polish Maj. Gen. Ireneusz Nowak told the Wall Street Journal that defense should also include the capability to strike back, adding that precision strikes deep within Russian territory would serve as a deterrent.

He pointed out that if Ukraine had had such capabilities at the start of the invasion, the conflict might not have evolved into a war resembling World War I.

The plans propose launching strikes approximately 93 to 621 miles behind the front line, utilizing precision missiles and less costly weapons like drones, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. Potential targets extend beyond airfields and military bases to include industrial facilities, critical infrastructure, and raw material resources that bolster Russia's war efforts. The objective is to integrate such strikes as a standard part of NATO's response to a Russian attack.

NATO's Gen. Grynkewich outlined this approach at a recent security conference in Warsaw, referring to it as his "theory of victory." His strategy involves first halting the initial wave of an attack, then weakening the enemy's capacity to sustain subsequent operations. If the offensive persists, NATO would target both attacking forces and the networks supplying, supporting, and directing them.

While the strategy does not advocate for the use of nuclear weapons, NATO recently held its first symposium dedicated to deep strikes in June. Precision weapons, including established systems like Tomahawk cruise missiles and ATACMS ballistic missiles, as well as newer weapons still in development, are at the core of this approach.

European countries are working to bolster their stocks of Storm Shadow, SCALP, and Taurus cruise missiles while also developing additional systems. Fabian Hoffmann, a senior research fellow at the Norwegian Institute for Defense Studies, told the Wall Street Journal that 20 European manufacturers are pursuing at least 48 projects to create inexpensive cruise missiles, though not all will be successful.

Ukraine has increasingly adopted a similar strategy, targeting military and economic assets within Russia using longer-range weapons, including domestically developed Flamingo cruise missiles. This approach has been highlighted in the report.

However, analysts caution that military planning alone will not ensure political authorization for these strikes. Nico Lange, a former senior German Defense Ministry official, told the Wall Street Journal that there remains a gap between military plans that incorporate offensive measures to defend against Russia and political views that primarily see defense as barriers or a "drone wall."

The unresolved issue, according to the report, is whether European leaders would authorize the operations deemed necessary by their military planners to stop and defeat a Russian attack.