NATO says will do ‘anything and everything’ if alliance is attacked

What the report says

NATO’s top military commander, US Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich, used an appearance at the Warsaw Security Forum in Poland on Monday to warn that the alliance would respond forcefully if it were attacked. He said NATO would stop an initial assault, hinder any follow-on advance and, if necessary, destroy the enemy’s war-fighting system. He also said any response would target not only the attacking force but also the support structures behind it.

Grynkewich did not name Russia, but his remarks came as European governments have raised concerns about sabotage, drone activity and cyberattacks they attribute to Moscow amid the war in Ukraine. He stressed that NATO is defensive and said he does not think conflict is imminent or inevitable. He added that maintaining readiness is the best way to preserve peace, while keeping communication open to avoid misunderstandings.

The comments come against a backdrop of heightened tension between NATO and Russia, including Russian warnings last month about possible nuclear use if NATO tried to cut off Kaliningrad, its heavily militarized Baltic exclave. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Moscow has no intention of attacking European countries, but European leaders remain skeptical, pointing to similar assurances before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Grynkewich said he spoke publicly because recent acts of sabotage and arson had unsettled people across the alliance, and he sought to reassure NATO’s one billion citizens that the alliance is prepared. He also played down worries about US commitment to NATO.