Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine on February 24. Credit: Kremlin.ruJames Stavridis, formerly Supreme Allied Commander at NATO, described on Monday how the US can turn Europe into Putin’s nightmare following his invasion of Ukraine.
Writing in Bloomberg, the Greek-American Vice Chairman of the Carlyle Group, an American multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services corporation, says that Putin’s Ukraine invasion can become his worst nightmare if the US and its NATO allies move their combat power right on his border. “This is exactly what he doesn’t want.”
Stavridis said that the European Command has nearly 100,000 US military personnel — some stationed permanently, others rotating in and out — spread over 51 countries and 21 million square miles.
“It is clearly time to move more combat power to the eastern borders of the alliance, out of the comfortable garrisons in Belgium, southwestern Germany, northern Italy and the US,” he says in his opinion piece in Bloomberg.
Stavridis: Move US forces to Poland, Baltic States
“Doing so will militarily discourage any further Russian adventurism, particularly along the borders of NATO; encourage allies and partners in the east, notably the Baltic states and Poland; and send a strong diplomatic and political signal to Putin that his attack on Ukraine will only energize the alliance for more operations,” he notes.
