NATO, the world’s biggest defence alliance, has said that it is to put 300,000 troops on high alert following the continuing invasion of Ukraine by Russia and Russian rhetoric against the West. NATO currently has only 40,000 troops on high alert.
The decision to put the troops on high alert will be announced at a NATO summit in Spain this week attended by numerous defence ministers and heads of state.
NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said in a statement:
"Together, this constitutes the biggest overhaul of our collective deterrence and defence since the Cold War. We will transform the NATO Response Force and increase the number of our high readiness forces to well over 300,000."
Adding:
"These troops will exercise together with home defence forces. And they will become familiar with local terrain, facilities, and our new pre-positioned stocks. So that they can respond smoothly and swiftly to any emergency."
More NATO equipment and troops are expected to be focused on the Baltic states of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, as well as Poland, which are believed to be the nations most under threat from potential Russian aggression.
Following the invasion of Ukraine on February 24th, tripwire forces were further established in many Eastern European countries. Tripwire forces are placed on the basis that while they may be small in number Russia knows by attacking these forces, they will trigger a wider war. These numbers are now drastically increased meaning Russia would face a massive military task if it chose to enter or strike out at NATO territory.
NATO has increased military spending by $350 billion since 2014, the year in which Russia invaded and seized Crimea and areas of Donbass in Ukraine.
There are currently also ongoing discussions between NATO and both Finland and Sweden who are seeking to join the defence alliance. These applications are however being held up by NATO member Turkey who claims these countries have links to Kurdish militants. Turkey is one of the few NATO countries that has so far refused to impose meaningful sanctions on Russia.
[Based on reporting by: Sky News]
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