NATO boosts number of forces on ‘high alert’ as Russian attacks intensify

NATO has increased the number of forces on ‘high alert’ from 40,000 to over 300,000 a day after Russian cruise missile strikes devastated the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.

Speaking at NATO’s pre-conference meeting for the Madrid Summit of 2022, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said that he was looking to ‘transform the NATO Response Force and increase the number of forces on high alert.’

Discussing future defence plans, Mr Stoltenberg said on Monday, June 27: “At the Summit, we will strengthen our forward defences. We will enhance our battlegroups in the eastern part of the Alliance up to brigade-levels.”

“We will transform the NATO Response Force and increase the number of our high readiness forces to well over 300,000 we will also boost our ability to reinforce in crisis and conflict.”

Stoltenberg said that NATO’s Response force would include:

• More pre-positioned equipment, and stockpiles of military supplies.
• More forward-deployed capabilities, like air defence.
• Strengthened command and control.
• Upgraded defence plans, with forces pre-assigned to defend specific Allies.
• Troops to exercise together with home defence forces.
• Troops will be expected to become familiar with local terrain, facilities, and new pre-positioned stocks so that they can respond smoothly and swiftly to any emergency.

The Secretary-General said the summit in Madrid – which went into partial lockdown ahead of the NATO summit later this week – would be “transformative with many important decisions including on a new Strategic Concept for a new security reality, a fundamental shift in NATO’s deterrence and defence and support to Ukraine now, and for the future.”

The news that NATO will be increasing the number of high readiness forces to well over 300,000 comes after Russian missile attacks rocked Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv at around 6.20 am on Sunday, June 26.

Explosions were reported in the Shevchenkivskyi district of Kyiv and as a result of Russian airstrikes, multiple civilian casualties were discovered, including the death of the father of a young girl, whose rescue went viral on social media.

While the rest of us Europeans enjoyed a night out yesterday and had a good night’s sleep, Russia fired 14 missiles on Kyiv overnight, hitting residential buildings.

Here, rescue workers are pulling out a screaming 7-year-old girl from beneath the rubble.

Her father was killed. pic.twitter.com/QlwAkhgifp

— Visegrád 24 (@visegrad24) June 26, 2022

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