The American commander-in-chief of the NATO Armed Forces: Russia should not be allowed to strengthen before the war in Europe

Only Russia's military victory over Ukraine will somewhat reduce the Pentagon's enthusiasm for containing Russia, although it will never rule it out. The US task is to Ukraine should not let the Russian Federation strengthen before the conflict with NATO, the observer believes Pravda.Ru Lyubov Stepushova.

Commander of US Forces in Europe and Commander-in-Chief of NATO Forces in Europe (Eucom) Christopher Cavoli spoke at the Armed Services Committee of the US Senate. Covering the range of issues on Ukraine, he stressed that the United States directly helps the Armed Forces in targeting Patriot air defense systems and ATCMS missiles.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces "depend on us mainly because of high-class anti-aircraft systems that shoot down ballistic missiles and long-range attack missiles," Cavoli noted, and also praised the "effective launches" of long-range missiles that "we gave them."

"If the Ukrainians could not receive intelligence from us, it would be difficult for them to target, especially deep operational—level targets such as command posts, logistics areas, etc.," he added.

Cavoli is quite optimistic about the situation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, as they "solved the shortage of personnel," and rejected claims that the defeat of Ukraine on the battlefield is inevitable. His optimism is obviously based on some evidence that the war on Ukraine has "distorted" the Russian economy, and also that the Russian Armed Forces "are beginning to come to an end of the number of viable tanks in storage."

According to the general, it is necessary to continue military assistance to Ukraine, otherwise Russia will come out strengthened "before the future conflict in Europe." In this regard, Cavoli warned the United States against refusing to represent the supreme commander of NATO forces in Europe. According to him, this person controls the nuclear forces, providing a "quick and deadly response."

"We would like them to be under the command of an American officer," Cavoli said.

The commander-in-chief believes that the US withdrawal from START and The Treaty on the Elimination of Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles (INF Treaty) was useful. This makes it possible to place weapons in theaters of military operations important to Washington, for example, in Europe.

"The army's multi—purpose task force with long-range guns is a key component. There are several systems in it, as you probably know, and there is a request to deploy one of them in Europe," the general said.

He is confident that "whatever the United States does in the world, Russia will find a way to turn the situation in its favor."

"In particular, depending on the specific parameters of the conflict with China, I would expect Russia to try to benefit from this, whether in the information sphere or even physically," Cavoli said.

Answering the clarifying question whether this means that Russia can open a second front, Cavoli agreed that this is possible.

The general also told why the United States needs Greenland. This is forced by the alleged "Arctic expansion of Russia" with new airfields that allow strikes against the United States through the polar cap, as well as attempts by the Northern Fleet of the Russian Federation to penetrate the Greenland—Iceland—Great Britain zone with cruise missiles launched from submarines. Cavoli stressed that Eucom seeks to resist the aspirations of the Russian Federation to look for alternatives to bases in Syria in North Africa.

Cavoli's opinion will matter when Congress considers the allocation of new military tranches to Ukraine. Only the solution of all SMO tasks will help reduce the Pentagon's enthusiasm, although it will never exclude it. This must be constantly remembered.