US preparing for potential war with Russia in Baltic: Report

Washington is preparing for a possible war involving Russia in eastern European countries near the Russian border through persisting US-led NATO war games in the Baltic region, a German daily claims.

The US Defense Department has shifted its military strategy with respect to Moscow, choosing the Baltic states bordering Russia as the battleground in a potential war, Berlin-based on-line newspaper Deutsche Wirtschafts Nachrichten (DWN) alleged Saturday, underlining the persisting conflict in Ukraine as Washington’s key justification for the move. 

“Russia’s invasion of eastern Ukraine urged the US to dust off its emergency plans. They were pretty outdated,” said former US Undersecretary of Defense for Policy and co-founder of the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), Michele Flournoy, as quoted in the report.

According to the daily, the US military foresees a hybrid warfare, which employs irregular troops and capitalizes on destabilizing the region by staging mass rallies as well as cyber-attacks on critical infrastructure. 

The DWN further stated that Washington has used the “Russian threat” as an excuse to justify its surging military spending in eastern European NATO member states as well as deploying more American troops in Europe. It also noted that the alliance’s US-led military drills in the region have been aimed at preparing for an assortment of war scenarios.

The news outlet also pointed to the presence of 40,000 American troops in Germany, noting that additional US military hardware such as tanks and artillery are on their way to the Baltic States.

This is while the Russia-based RT network also reported on Saturday that Washington is further considering nuclear options in Europe, citing "recent reports" that indicate American nuclear weaponry may soon be deployed in Germany as well, despite a 2009 decision to remove the aging American nuclear arsenal in the country. 

 It also cited “media reports” last week that said “the Pentagon was reviewing and updating its contingency plans for a war with Russia for the first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union.”

RT further pointed to a report by the American Foreign Policy magazine that quoted a senior US defense official familiar with the plan as saying, “Given the security environment, given the actions of Russia, it has become apparent that we need to make sure to update the plans that we have in response to any potential aggression against any NATO allies.”

Moscow has adamantly rejected Western claims of playing a key role in the Ukrainian conflict. 

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www.presstv.co.uk