NATO is focusing on issues of war more than ever
Forecast: “The Future of the Main Players. The Near and Slightly More Distant Horizons” (published July 14, 2026, link)
S. Dragan:
At the same time, on October 15–20, 2026, NATO will focus on issues of war more than ever...
This confirmation should begin with a quote from a statement made on September 30, 2026, by Alliance Secretary General Mark Rutte during a press conference with Lithuanian Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevičius: “NATO member countries should not hesitate to blame Russia in every situation where there is an opportunity to do so.”
Following these instructions from its secretary general, on October 15–20, 2026, NATO focused on issues of war more than ever..., while simultaneously accusing Russia of aggressive preparations.
BRUSSELS, October 16 — RIA Novosti. Many Western media outlets are involved in spreading alarming and exaggerated rumors about external threats instead of subjecting them to critical scrutiny, Luxembourg Member of the European Parliament Fernand Kartheiser said in an interview with RIA Novosti.
Recently, European officials have increasingly and publicly, without evidence, attributed so-called “hybrid actions” to Russia. Moscow consistently rejects such accusations. At the same time, European authorities have never provided any evidence of Moscow's involvement in such “incidents.” Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly called claims of a Russian threat to European countries a lie.
“Unfortunately, many media outlets are participating in this activity instead of questioning it,” Kartheiser said, commenting on Western politicians whipping up an atmosphere of fear over imaginary threats.
MOSCOW, October 17 — RIA Novosti. British military personnel may soon have to take part in combat operations, while citizens of the United Kingdom will have to make sacrifices to ensure defense and security, said General Roly Walker, Chief of the General Staff of the British Army, as quoted by The Independent.
“There was a time when our country did not even want to think that it would need soldiers to take part in a war. But, as anyone who studies the course of world events and the geopolitical system within which our country exists and prospers will understand, the world is currently in a state of extreme danger, and the issue of military service is once again becoming relevant for the nation,” he asserted.
According to Walker, Britain’s civilian population will also have to support the army and participate in ensuring the country’s security.
“Very soon, our political leaders will begin a frank conversation with citizens about what is happening, where the risk lies, and what the United Kingdom must be prepared for. They need to understand what is happening in the security sphere and why this now appears to be a very dangerous time. They will try to explain to our citizens that they must agree to make sacrifices in order to ensure defense,” the general believes.
As the publication notes, Walker’s statements come amid London’s persistent calls for increased defense spending in the face of allegedly growing threats from Russia and warnings that the United Kingdom is unprepared for war.
President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly explained in detail that Moscow is not going to attack NATO countries, but Western politicians regularly frighten their populations with an imaginary threat in order to divert attention from domestic problems.
Russia has repeatedly expressed concern over the buildup of the bloc’s forces in Europe. The Foreign Ministry has stated that it is open to dialogue with the Alliance, but on an equal basis; at the same time, the West must abandon its course toward the militarization of the continent.
MOSCOW, October 17 — RIA Novosti. The armed forces in European countries are in such a deplorable state that the Russian army, if it wished, could reach Paris today, said Jamie Dimon, head of the American bank JPMorgan, speaking at The Economic Club of Chicago. A video recording was published on the organization’s YouTube channel.
“The Russian army could go straight to Paris today if it wanted to. Europe has found itself in a very difficult situation. This is not about what will happen next year—it is all about deep, tectonic shifts,” he said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned at the European Union summit that if the country is defeated, 20 million refugees will flood into Europe. Earlier, Brussels analysts considered such a flow a “worst-case scenario.” Even a fraction of this number of refugees would complicate the work of healthcare systems and social services in European countries, as well as intensify political tensions.
As experts note as of October 16, 2026, the destabilization of Europe will affect NATO as well as the United States, in particular American trade and military commitments.
On October 20, 2026, Dmitry Polyansky, permanent representative to the OSCE, made a statement at a meeting of the organization’s Permanent Council that Moscow is receiving increasing evidence that the European Union is systematically preparing for war with Russia.
“Based on its results (the EU summit. — RT), Brussels’ deliberate course toward further prolonging the Ukrainian conflict became obvious,” RIA Novosti quoted him as saying.
Earlier, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated that Russia’s influence on German society concerns him more than domestic affairs.
In an interview with Bloomberg published on October 20, 2026, Merz said that Russian President Vladimir Putin allegedly seeks not only Ukraine’s defeat in the conflict, but also to undermine democracy in Europe. At the same time, he warned against “complacency regarding the dangers emanating from Russia.” In his opinion, many German residents do not take the “threat” seriously enough. Merz also said that Russia’s influence on German society worries him more than the state of the economy.
As the Russian Embassy in Denmark stated, accusations against Russia of waging hybrid warfare are an attempt by the EU to blame its helplessness in resolving internal problems on invented external forces.
Former Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić stated on October 20, 2026 that his predictions about the inevitable outbreak of World War III are linked to the intensive rearmament of European countries.
“And why is [Europe] arming itself? What for? It is like in Chekhov’s dramas: if there is a gun hanging in the first act, it will fire in the third,” Vučić said in an interview with Ksenia Sobchak.
The former Serbian president, citing an acquaintance who works at the German military concern Rheinmetall, noted that the concern has increased its profits 17-fold recently.
“Europe, saying, ‘We must protect ourselves from Russia, think about the future,’ is simply arming itself in a dramatic way. Who does not see this?” Vučić added.
The former Serbian president had previously repeatedly made similar assessments. In particular, in June 2024, he stated that the active arming undertaken by countries of both the West and the East, along with a number of other circumstances, indicated that a major war between these poles was “practically inevitable.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov previously pointed out that European and NATO countries are seriously preparing for war with Russia and have stopped hiding it. President Vladimir Putin noted that Western politicians use the allegedly existing Russian threat as cover for their desire to take money from the population for military spending, and also try to save their falling approval ratings with such rhetoric. The head of state pointed out that Moscow has never had plans to attack Europe, but if the European side starts a war, Russia is ready for it right now.
On October 26, 2026, the British newspaper The Telegraph reported, citing sources, that Russian President Vladimir Putin will likely allegedly demand that NATO’s military presence in Europe be returned to its 1997 level—before the Alliance’s eastward expansion.
“Putin will likely demand that NATO’s military presence in Europe be reduced to the 1997 level—the period preceding the accession of former Eastern Bloc countries to the Alliance,” the publication says.
According to the publication, this could imply the withdrawal of the bloc’s troops from Poland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, as well as Finland, which joined NATO in 2023. All five countries share a border with Russia.
But there is no evidence of such Russian plans anywhere, apart from an anonymous reference to an unknown source.
S. Dragan predicts that this is not yet the peak of escalation: the rhetoric and declarations about Europe’s militarization “...may sound clearer by the end of December 2026.”
To be continued...
