Europe is already planning for what happens if Ukraine loses.
A newly energized Russia is already escalating grey-zone operations in Eastern Europe,
says Estonia’s defense minister.
“We see that the Russian war budget today is around 30 or 31% of their state budget. But this is only the military spendings. When we add to that what they are also the spending on…some other state services, which are directly linked to security, then we will see that this budget goes to 35 to 40% of the state budget.”
Russia has basically adapted its entire economy and society for war. That increases the likelihood of a direct confrontation in order to justify the buildup.
“The Russians have actually managed to really ramp up the defense industry capability, put it on a war footing. Then the unfortunate and quite dark logic arises from that: Once you've done all these things, once you’ve ramped up your economy or put it on a war footing, then there's not an easy way of going back. So they will probably have to maximize,” he said.
"Pevkur said Russia’s mobilization and military training efforts suggest they are more interested in preparing for an attack on a NATO nation than defending against one."
“We see from the Russian behavior at the moment that they have no feeling or no perception that NATO will attack Russia,” he said.
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