NATO’S ESCALATING WARGAMES THREATEN A NUCL EAR EXCHANGE WITH RUSSIA

Britain will send 20,000 troops from across its armed forces to take part  
in NATO wargames this spring – with the focus on repelling a Russian-led  
invasion. Such a conflict, if it were to become a reality, would likely  
end in a nuclear exchange, warns CND.

In a bellicose speech at Lancaster House on Monday, defence secretary  
Grant Shapps said the West stood at a “crossroads” and that Britain “must  
be prepared to deter our enemies, prepared to lead our allies and prepared  
to defend our nation.” He added the government would be committed to  
military spending of 2.5 percent of GDP and would urge other NATO members  
to do so.

https://www.stopwar.org.uk/article/natos-escalating-wargames-threaten-a-nuclear-exchange-with-russia/

Shapps also confirmed an announcement made by the prime minister in  
October, that 20,000 armed forces personnel from across the Royal Navy,  
RAF, and British Army will take place in the upcoming NATO Steadfast  
Defender Exercise, due to take place in February and March. He added that  
the deployment is one of “NATO’s largest deployments since the end of the  
Cold War.”

They’ll be joined by troops from the other 30 NATO members as well as  
Sweden – whose application to join the bloc has been held up by Turkey.  
According to the Financial Times, the drills will take place across  
Germany, Poland and the Baltics and are “designed to model potential  
manoeuvres against an enemy modelled on a coalition led by Russia, named  
Occasus for the purposes of the drill.” Shapps said the drills – which  
happen to coincide with the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of  
Ukraine – would provide “vital reassurance against the Putin menace.”

The British contingent, according to the Ministry of Defence, will include  
the deployment of “eight warships and submarines.” Britain’s submarine  
fleet includes six nuclear-powered but conventionally-armed Astute-class  
attack submarines as well as four nuclear-armed Vanguard-class submarines.  
Shapps didn’t mention which submarines would join the exercise. However,  
he would be unlikely to admit that nuclear-armed submarines would take  
part under the policy of strategic ambiguity.

NATO’s annual nuclear drills – Steadfast Noon – took place last October  
across southern Europe. During its annual summit in Vilnius last year,  
NATO members agreed to increase the number of annual drills it conducted  
 from one to two, as well as conduct training against terrorist threats  
outside its borders.

CND General Secretary Kate Hudson said:

“NATO military planners are keen to wargame a conflict with Russia and  
this will no doubt involve planning for the potential use of nuclear  
weapons. The US deployment of F-35 warplanes and new B61-12 guided nuclear  
bombs to Europe is in full swing and NATO’s nuclear doctrine allows for  
first-strike attacks. With an escalating war in the Middle East, and the  
continuing war in Ukraine, now is not the time for bellicose talk, and  
provocative exercises. Our government needs to take steps to bring about  
ceasefires in both Gaza and Ukraine, rather than escalating tension and  
preparing for more wars. Either of these wars could go nuclear and they  
have to be brought to a peaceful and just conclusion before the worst  
happens.”

### - having another little 'dry-run' then are they?

not forgetting that russia was conducting very similar war games, right on  
ukraine's border, when they suddenly turned and invaded them??

i mean, russia currently appears to be sitting-pretty behind its now  
well-entrenched defenses after the stalemate resulting from ukraine's  
failed counter-offensive, they're not overtly threatening any other  
nation, nor showing any signs of expanding their war on ukraine to include  
anyone else, only that's not quite how it's being played out in the  
media...

so why then all this huffing & puffing from the west about preparing for a  
possible confrontation with russia unless they themselves are actually  
planning something along those very lines??

the simple truth being, that russia now has the west by the proverbial  
balls in that it's increasingly costing the west a shed-load to support  
ukraine, and nada's coming of it!?

a situation that russia can 'afford' to continue with until the cows come  
home, but the west can't??

that increasing, the only way the west can now possibly resolve all this  
in some way favourable to themselves, is by actually attacking russia  
directly!

and it looks like they's gonna do it too!

i.e., they actually have no other choice/option now besides either  
giving-in to russia's demands (which aren't entirely unreasonable) or in  
going for it big time to wipe russia off the face of the earth!

plus these war games aren't exactly suggestive of the west giving-in are  
they, no way...

and because what else can the west possibly do otherwise except concede  
defeat?? (and imho we're far too proud to ever do summat like that!)

it also looks like they's all preparing for a big punch-up in the middle  
east quite soon too and russia backs both iran & syria amongst others out  
there, and as such could thus be drawn-into it at some point if/when the  
west goes ape on certain parts of the middle east... meanwhile, china  
ain't sayin' nuthin' are they; they's just quietly watching & waiting,  
knowing their 'own' time will surely come over taiwan at some point...  
maybe soon!

iow: it looks like thang could well be right when he stated: "war war war"  
is coming this year!

if only because: "out of the mouth of babes and sucklings" and all that  
heh ;)

and because, for once, he may well have gotten it right!