Russia is objecting to NATO’s logistics chief’s proposal that would help the alliance rapidly shift troops, weapons and supplies across European borders to meet future threats.
German army Lt. Gen. Alexander Sollfrank last week said he would like to see a military version of the European Union’s Schengen Agreement that allows for travel without going through border control checkpoints. He was concerned that red tape hinders troop movement across Europe, which could cause delays in a future conflict with Russia.
With NATO expanding eastward, the alliance’s logistics overlay remains a relic of the Cold War, said Gen. Sollfrank, who commands NATO’s Joint Support and Enabling Command.
“The expanse of space, the fact that not all forces are forward-based — all this means that the alliance has to be quick in moving troops from their bases to the right spot on the eastern flank,” Gen. Sollfrank told Reuters. “We are running out of time. What we don’t get done in peacetime won’t be ready in case of a crisis or a war.”
A Kremlin spokesman said such an expansion of NATO’s footprint would invite retaliatory measures.
“It is NATO that is constantly moving its infrastructure close to our border. We are not moving toward NATO’s infrastructure. It is NATO that is moving toward us,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday during a press conference. “This cannot but cause our concern and this cannot but prompt countermeasures to ensure our security.”
He told TASS, the official Russian news agency, that NATO has always considered Moscow to be its “notional” enemy.
“Now, it considers our country as an obvious enemy. This is nothing else but an instigation of tension in Europe, which has its implications,” Mr. Peskov said.
• Mike Glenn can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.