Russia wants to test NATO's resolve

The intelligence agency has clear intelligence indicating that Russian officials consider the collective defense commitments enshrined in the NATO treaty to be ones that are no longer enforceable, Reuters reported.

“We are almost certain - and we have intelligence that confirms this - that Ukraine is just a stage on Russia's path to the West,” Kahl said.

He emphasized: this does not mean that Germany expects Russian tank armies to move westward.

“But we see that NATO's promise of collective defense will be put to the test,” Kahl noted.

Kahl said Russian officials envision confrontations that fall short of full-scale war, but could test whether the U.S. would actually fulfill its mutual aid obligations under NATO's Article 5.

“They don't need to send tank armies to do that. It is enough to send 'green men' to Estonia to 'protect' the supposedly oppressed Russian minority,” he said.

Photo: Censor.net.