While our Western partners believe that Russian aggression is primarily a problem for Ukraine, and they are helping us out of a sense of solidarity and respect for international law, Erephia has already launched attacks on NATO territory.
The Russian special services have recently been increasingly active in sabotage in Europe, setting fire to military depots and organizing explosions at defense enterprises, which delays the production and supply of weapons to Ukraine and weakens European defense capabilities. The New York Times, citing U.S. intelligence sources, points to the involvement of Russian GRU agents in these incidents.
In Poland, 12 Russian agents were arrested for attempted arson and sabotage on the railroad, and attacks on energy and weapons companies were prevented in Norway. In the UK, military depots were set on fire, and mysterious accidents occurred in Sweden, which the country’s intelligence services consider to be “sabotage with the support of a foreign state.” In the Czech Republic, Russian agents attempted to disable railroad signaling systems and set fires at factories producing ammunition for Ukraine. In Estonia, the cars of the Minister of the Interior and leading politicians were destroyed.
And an accidental fire at the Diehl steel plant in Berlin, where weapons for Ukraine were manufactured, took 160 firefighters to extinguish, not to mention the damage caused by air pollution from toxic products. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has bluntly stated that Russia is waging a “shadow war” against Europe. However, not all European leaders are ready to recognize that Russia is crossing the line into war. At the level of intelligence services, Western governments have long recognized Russia as an enemy that has attacked them on their territory, but societies remain captive to illusions and populism.
Instead, Kremlin officials and state propaganda explicitly state that they are not at war with Ukraine, but primarily with the West and NATO countries. Of course, the Russians have to say this, otherwise they will have to admit that the largest state and the “second army of the world” was defeated near Kyiv and forced to retreat from Kherson and Kharkiv by Ukrainian mobilized soldiers. Instead, the claim that the Russians are at war with NATO allows them to explain to the zealous electorate the reasons for the difficulties of the “SVO” and even demonstrate “Russia’s strength” in confronting such a powerful enemy. In the West, the only response is a mocking smile, considering such theses to be nothing more than propaganda rhetoric.
The sooner the West realizes that the security hole in the European boat is a common problem, not just for those who are being flooded at the stern, the sooner it will see the real threat to itself. After all, “sleeping through” the beginning of a war against itself is tantamount to defeat.
Author: Valeriy Maydanyuk
