West and Russia are on course for war, says ex-Nato deputy commander

[rug]

Former British general predicts that Russia will seize territory in eastern Ukraine and invade Baltic states, sparking war



Ewen MacAskill
Defence correspondent
Wednesday 18 May 2016 06.00 EDT

A startling claim that the west is on course for war with Russia has been delivered by the former deputy commander of Nato, the former British general Sir Alexander Richard Shirreff.

In a book published on Wednesday, 2017 War With Russia, Shirreff argues that the events in Crimea have destroyed the post-cold-war settlement and set the stage for conflict, in events that could begin to unfold next year.

In a chilling scenario, he predicts that Russia, in order to escape what it believes to be encirclement by Nato, will seize territory in eastern Ukraine, open up a land corridor to Crimea and invade the Baltic states.

Shirreff, who was deputy supreme allied commander Europe from 2011 to 2014, is risking his reputation by making such a bold prediction. But he claims his narrative is closely modelled on his Nato experience of war-gaming future conflicts.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/may/18/west-russia-on-course-for-war-nato-ex-deputy-commander

[Sherman A1]

1. Interesting

however, wargaming future conflict scenarios does not necessarily mean that they will come to pass (and I hope that they do not). General Staffs and planners are supposed to create realistic simulations in order to plan for a variety of potential conflicts that may or may not arise. This is part of their job.

[rug]

2. He's probably beating war drums but the "war on terror" is a calculated distraction.

[HereSince1628]

3. Nothing builds 'unity' like threats of war, so who needs unity?

Oh yah, there's that discontent in the UK about being in Euro.