Vladimir Putin could target the Baltic states next following the US’s controversial policy switch, according to a former NATO commander
US President Donald Trump has once again stirred controversy with his outspoken views on Ukrainian President,Volodymyr Zelensky. Fresh off a speech at a Saudi-backed investment event in Florida, Trump publicly slammed Zelensky, calling him a “dictator”.
Trump shockingly accused Ukraine of initiating the conflict with Russia – a war initiated by Russia’s full-scale invasion nearly three years ago. World leaders are appalled by this dramatic shift in the US’s stance, which seemingly aligns Trump closer to Putin than ever before.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz condemned the US president’s latest remarks as “false and dangerous.” Adding to the turmoil, Trump’s own Secretary of Defence Pete Masgeth made an eyebrow-raising statement that the US is “no longer primarily focused on the security of Europe”, which appears to diverge from established NATO commitments.
The gravity of these developments hasn’t been lost on General Sir Alexander Richard David Shirreff, the former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe, who spoke to Times Radio about the increasing risk of conflict. He warned: “I think the events of the last week have made the likelihood of war with Russia within the next three to five years much, much more likely.”
The former commander further hinted at Putin’s broader ambitions beyond Ukraine. He noted that Russia’s activities in Moldova, Georgia, and electoral interference in Romania, suggest that the Baltic states could be next.
Shirreff explained: “Once he’s achieved his aims in Ukraine, he’s not going to stop. He’s already started in Moldova, Georgia and with electoral manipulation in Romania.
“I think he will turn his attention to the Baltic states which were part of the Soviet Union. Putin, like other Russians, will think of the Baltic states as belonging to Russia.”
Shirreff continued: “Where does that take us? They are close allies of this country and the rest of the European nations, and therefore that means that we will almost certainly be in a state of war with Russia over that if they try to have a go at the Baltic states.”
In light of Trump seemingly choosing a different side amid the conflict, there’s an echoing concern that the US is drifting away from the established international web of alliances and friendships.
