Polish general: Russia cannot attack a NATO state now, but is escalating through hybrid operations

Russia currently lacks the military capability to invade a NATO state, but is intensifying its hybrid operations against Western countries, Polish Lieutenant General Piotr Błazeusz said on Thursday in Brussels.

Poland’s military representative to NATO and EU committees explained that Ukraine’s resistance has reduced Moscow’s ability to open a direct conflict with the Alliance. Russia has suffered significant losses since the invasion began in February 2022, although it has also made territorial gains. According to estimates by Kyiv, more than 1.5 million Russian military personnel have been killed or wounded.

However, the general warned that Moscow is “constantly escalating” through sabotage, cyberattacks and other actions below the threshold of war. The statements were made after Maria Zakharova described European factories producing weapons for Ukraine as possible military targets. European Commissioner for Defence Andrius Kubilius said that attacking such a factory on NATO territory could trigger Article 5.

Discussions in Brussels also focused on the Suwałki Corridor, the approximately 65-kilometre route between Poland and Lithuania. Bordered by Kaliningrad and Belarus, it is considered a vulnerable point on NATO’s eastern flank.