Kremlin Spy Chief Warns of ‘Preemptive’ Moves Against NATO Amid Rising Tensions

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Kremlin Spy Chief Warns of ‘Preemptive’ Moves Against NATO Amid Rising Tensions

 

Russia and Belarus are preparing to take preemptive action against NATO countries, according to the head of Russia’s foreign intelligence service, who accused European powers of dangerously escalating the war in Ukraine.

 

Sergei Naryshkin, the chief of Russia’s SVR intelligence agency and a former KGB officer, made the provocative claim during talks in Minsk with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. "We feel and see that European countries, especially France, Britain and Germany, are increasing the level of escalation around the Ukrainian conflict, so we need to act preemptively. We are ready for this," said Naryshkin. He did not offer specific evidence for what he described as increased NATO military activity near Russian and Belarusian borders.

 

 

Belarus remains Moscow’s closest ally in Europe and has already served as a launchpad for Russian attacks on Ukraine. The Kremlin has also deployed tactical nuclear weapons within Belarus, further solidifying their strategic military alliance.

 

 

Naryshkin’s comments come amid growing Western concern over a shadow war believed to be waged by Russian and Belarusian operatives across Europe. Western intelligence officials say agents from both nations have been linked to numerous acts of sabotage and arson since President Vladimir Putin launched the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

 

 

Sir Richard Moore, head of Britain’s foreign intelligence service, described Russia’s sabotage campaign as “staggeringly reckless.” Targets have included cargo planes, commercial warehouses, retail shops, and even critical infrastructure like underwater cables. Russian intelligence agencies are also said to be behind cyberattacks and electronic interference efforts aimed at destabilizing European governments and eroding support for Ukraine.

 

According to a recent analysis by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the number of Russian sabotage attempts nearly tripled between 2023 and 2024, after having already quadrupled from the previous year. “Despite the increase in Russian attacks, western countries have not developed an effective strategy to counter these attacks,” the report warned. It also noted that acts of sabotage allow the Kremlin to engage in coercive actions that fall below the threshold of open warfare—minimizing the risk of direct military retaliation.

 

While the GRU, Russia’s military intelligence service, is believed to lead these operations, the SVR and the FSB—Russia’s domestic security service previously headed by Putin—are also implicated. However, not all attacks have been conducted by Russian nationals. In the UK, a 20-year-old British man admitted to setting fire to a Ukrainian-owned business in East London on Moscow’s behalf. Earlier this month, a Romanian man was arrested in connection with a blaze at a DHL facility in Birmingham, believed to be caused by a Russian-made incendiary device.

 

In Lithuania, a 17-year-old Ukrainian refugee, Daniil Bardadim, was charged with terrorism after allegedly setting fire to an Ikea store in Vilnius. Authorities claim he was promised a BMW and approximately $11,000 for the act. It remains unclear whether Bardadim was aware that he may have been acting under Moscow’s influence.

 

Interestingly, no such sabotage attacks have been reported in Hungary or Serbia—two of Russia’s most reliable European allies aside from Belarus. This pattern has raised further suspicions about the Kremlin’s selective strategy in targeting only those nations firmly aligned with NATO.

 

Naryshkin’s latest statements underscore a growing sense of confrontation between Russia, its allies, and Western powers. As rhetoric and covert operations escalate, the line between hybrid warfare and open conflict continues to blur—leaving Europe facing an increasingly volatile and uncertain security landscape.

 

Based on a report by The Times  2025-04-18

 

 

[JimHuaHin]

Interesting.

 

Russia has been waging a cyber war and a limited infrastructure war against NATO for sometime.

 

With Trump promising to close USA bases in Europe - which the American Israeli and Zionist lobby groups will oppose due to these bases' importance for Israeli and USA military actions in the Middle East and Africa - Putin may see this as an ideal time to attack.

 

On the other hand, recent moves by the EU and China to move closer together - due to Tump's global tariff war - China would not want to see any additional wars with Europe at this time.

[Tug]

I agree wholeheartedly with jimhuahin with the profound weakness shown by trump and his simpering hero worship of Mr putin acting more as an asset to the Russian federation than a nato member could certainly lead putin to think the time is neigh.with this caveat Ukraine the brave nation and her heroic peoples have weakened Russia.this and the continued support from the EU perhaps will stay his hand.in my view putin will endeavor to exterminate Ukraine and her people before taking on NATO.

[harryviking]

🤣🤣Yeah....sure! Russia has so much of an army! Threatening anything outside of Ukraine and it is end of story!! Imbeciles!!!  

[candide]

Baltic states are the obvious targets.

 

[spidermike007]

This might be just another indication of Putin's endless thirst for power and territory, and the American goon is making this entire project far easier for him, which is one of the reasons why Trump is perhaps the most dangerous and irresponsible man in the world at this moment. 

[connda]

I'd say that most politicians and the majority of global citizens want WWIII.  Why not. It's a Fourth Turning.  Gonna happen soon enough.  So? 

Game On!  

[black tabby12345]

Another B.S from the cornered putler.

First, nuke intimidation; didn't work.

Now 1st strike warning?

If they are really ready and determination to do it, they start it without saying anything.

Who is dumb enough to tell the Enemy What their Next Move is?

[NativeBob]

I just love this level of journalism! My cat's fur ball makes more sense 

[Cameroni]

2 hours ago, candide said:

Baltic states are the obvious targets.

 

 

Ludicrous. Russia has shown precisely zero interest in the Baltics. 

 

Why would they want them anyway.

 

What a nonsense.

[TheAppletons]

7 minutes ago, black tabby12345 said:

Who is dumb enough to tell the Enemy What their Next Move is?

 

  Said Pete Hegseth.  Probably.

[jvs]

36 minutes ago, black tabby12345 said:

Another B.S from the cornered putler.

First, nuke intimidation; didn't work.

Now 1st strike warning?

If they are really ready and determination to do it, they start it without saying anything.

Who is dumb enough to tell the Enemy What their Next Move is?

Trump!

[Hawaiian]

36 minutes ago, Cameroni said:

 

Ludicrous. Russia has shown precisely zero interest in the Baltics. 

 

Why would they want them anyway.

 

What a nonsense.

Ever heard of Kaliningrad?

[candide]

1 hour ago, Cameroni said:

 

Ludicrous. Russia has shown precisely zero interest in the Baltics. 

 

Why would they want them anyway.

 

What a nonsense.

Talking about nonsense...

[Cameroni]

1 hour ago, Hawaiian said:

Ever heard of Kaliningrad?

Clearly you mean Königsberg. Which was annexed in 1945. Obviously we are talking of 2025. Not 1945. Putin has showed no signs whatsoever of being interested in the Baltics. 

[rough diamond]

4 minutes ago, Cameroni said:

Clearly you mean Königsberg. Which was annexed in 1945. Obviously we are talking of 2025. Not 1945. Putin has showed no signs whatsoever of being interested in the Baltics. 

B.S.   I suggest you learn geography as well as history without the use of a Kremlin bible.

Have a look at where Kaliningrad is!

[NativeBob]

1 hour ago, Hawaiian said:

Ever heard of Kaliningrad?

Yes. Former Konigsberg. Nice city. Unfortunately not as nice as pre-WWII.

Some goes to Danzig.

[MicroB]

4 hours ago, harryviking said:

🤣🤣Yeah....sure! Russia has so much of an army! Threatening anything outside of Ukraine and it is end of story!! Imbeciles!!!  

 

He's gambling on the same lack of unity as in 1939. In 1939, the German Army was comprehensively outgunned by its neighbours, if they acted collectively. But they did not. And Poland and most of Western Europe was over run in short order.

 

Europe (France and UK)  lack tactical nuclear weapons. Russia has tactical nuclear weapons. Would an invasion of Latvia cause Paris or Berlin to come running to its aid. NATO wargaming  indicates that because of the small size of the Baltics, Russia could very quickly over run them before NATO reinforcements arrive. The current garrison would need to perform a holding action, but they are not exactly under a unified command, and potentially its like Singapore all over again, when a numerically superior British-Australian force surrendered to relatively ill equipped Japanese soldiers on push bikes (the Japanese seized the water supplies, making defence of the island impossible).

 

Russia doesn't really need much of an army to invade and secure Latvia. Its tiny. Once taken, NATO forces in Estonia and Lithunia are in a very difficult position. They might even surrender without a fight, to spare destruction. Russian forces in Kalingrad could effectively control the Baltic, or try. Then you have maximum propaganda of defeated looking NATO troops being paraded through Moscow, as hostages.

 

I can then imagine some Western politicians talking about new facts on the ground, and accepting it. Putin deploys a tactical nuclear weapon as a first strike, if his forces do start getting mullered. I have zero faith the Americans would respond. Europe can only respond with a strategic weapon, which are bigger, and far less accurate (so not much use in taking out military formations, more useful if you want to escalate to a whole city. I can see such a choice leading to hestitation and ultimately inaction.

 

Where this goes wrong is miscalculation, which is how every World War started. Germany miscalculated. Japan miscalculated. The world paid the price.

[MicroB]

14 minutes ago, Cameroni said:

Clearly you mean Königsberg. Which was annexed in 1945. Obviously we are talking of 2025. Not 1945. Putin has showed no signs whatsoever of being interested in the Baltics. 

 

Commie nonsense. The Baltics are top of his list to reform the USSR>

[candide]

2 hours ago, Cameroni said:

 

Ludicrous. Russia has shown precisely zero interest in the Baltics. 

 

Why would they want them anyway.

 

What a nonsense.

Sure! That's why Putin is angry at the fact that the Baltic State are reinforcing their defense and are planning to implement landmines at their borders. But may e he fears that the Baltic States may invade Russia! 

 

On top of it, as outlined by Rough Diamond  Russia has a sea access problem and Lithuania is the obvious way to link Kaliningrad.

[Mike_Hunt]

6 hours ago, Tug said:

I agree wholeheartedly with jimhuahin with the profound weakness shown by trump and his simpering hero worship of Mr putin acting more as an asset to the Russian federation than a nato member could certainly lead putin to think the time is neigh.with this caveat Ukraine the brave nation and her heroic peoples have weakened Russia.this and the continued support from the EU perhaps will stay his hand.in my view putin will endeavor to exterminate Ukraine and her people before taking on NATO.

It's time for the lazy Europeans to deal with issues in their backyard.  

[Will B Good]

2 hours ago, Cameroni said:

 

Ludicrous. Russia has shown precisely zero interest in the Baltics. 

 

Why would they want them anyway.

 

What a nonsense.

 

So true.....these incidents were just a bit of larking about.......

 

1. 

Cyberattacks (e.g., Estonia, 2007)

Estonia was hit by a massive wave of cyberattacks in 2007, which targeted government, banking, and media websites. These attacks followed a decision to relocate a Soviet-era war memorial, and though Russia denied involvement, evidence pointed to state-sponsored actors or Kremlin-aligned groups.

 

2. 

Airspace Violations and Military Provocations

Russian military aircraft have repeatedly violated Baltic airspace, prompting NATO jets to scramble regularly. Russian naval activity in the Baltic Sea is also closely monitored and has caused concern due to aggressive maneuvers.

Russia has held military exercises near the Baltic borders that simulate scenarios involving conflict with NATO forces, which is seen as threatening by Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

 

3. 

Disinformation and Hybrid Tactics

Russia has used disinformation campaigns to stir ethnic tensions, particularly in Estonia and Latvia, where there are sizable Russian-speaking minorities.

Russian media and online platforms have attempted to undermine trust in democratic institutions and sow division within these countries.

 

4. 

Economic Pressure

Russia has at times used energy supply manipulation or trade restrictions as a form of pressure, although the Baltic states have worked hard to reduce dependence on Russian energy since the 2000s.

 

5. 

Political Threats and Rhetoric

Russian officials have made statements that question the legitimacy of NATO’s presence in the Baltics or that suggest the Baltics are part of Russia’s “sphere of influence.”

There’s been frequent rhetoric in Russian media implying the Baltic states are hostile or even Nazi-sympathetic, especially in the context of their WWII history.

 

6. 

Response to NATO Expansion

Russia has strongly opposed NATO’s military presence in the Baltic region, viewing it as a threat. NATO battlegroups have been stationed in the Baltics since 2017 to deter aggression, which Moscow frames as “encirclement.”

[MicroB]

6 hours ago, Tug said:

I agree wholeheartedly with jimhuahin with the profound weakness shown by trump and his simpering hero worship of Mr putin acting more as an asset to the Russian federation than a nato member could certainly lead putin to think the time is neigh.with this caveat Ukraine the brave nation and her heroic peoples have weakened Russia.this and the continued support from the EU perhaps will stay his hand.in my view putin will endeavor to exterminate Ukraine and her people before taking on NATO.

 

 

Technically he won't be taking on NATO, just Europe. SHAPE is always headed by a US flag officer. But he reports to his President, not to any European leader. At best, there will be hesitation, while the SHAPE commander awaits a response from Washington. Worst case wargame scenario is that Russia can take the Baltic states in 36 hours (Rand Corp estimate). And then Russia controls the Baltic States. What then? How do you make the Russians leave? Fight them, and probably destroy those countries in the process. Sanctions? Open a new front?

 

The casus belli for Russia would be to secure a corridor to Kalingrad, maybe in the middle of winter.  They then lay effective siege to the Baltics. Support from Finland across the the Gulf of Finland will be difficult. Logistically, it would be difficult for NATO  to get supplies to Helsinki except by air; the roads are not great in winter. They wuld be having to contest the Baltic for freedom of navigation. Russia might demand removal of NATO forces in return of safe passage. The position of the Baltic states has always been tenuous. A bellicose Poland might respond, trying to take back Polish territory (and no doubt the internet will be full of experts pointing out these areas were never really Polish, and Poland isn;t a real country anyhow), but the Americans have all just pulled out of Poland. Who has their backs?

[MicroB]

11 minutes ago, Mike_Hunt said:

It's time for the lazy Europeans to deal with issues in their backyard.  

 

Communist stooge talk.

 

Some would say the Americans much prefer the frontline to be Berlin and not Baltimore. That was the compact for the whole of the Cold War. A war in Europe ensured there wasn;t a war in North America. Look at a map. How quickly could Russia take Alaska, before America could get anyone up there to defend it. Sarah Palin could see Russia from her window.

[worgeordie]

He should just stick to trying to beat Ukraine into submission ,

before trying to take on NATO and rest of Europe  ,a NATO 

without our American friends I suppose ...

 

regards Worgeordie

[MicroB]

4 hours ago, worgeordie said:

He should just stick to trying to beat Ukraine into submission ,

before trying to take on NATO and rest of Europe  ,a NATO 

without our American friends I suppose ...

 

regards Worgeordie

 

Thing is, he's not planning to take on NATO and the rest of Europe. Just the 11,000 or so NATO troops already in the Baltic States. He's banking on achieving a fait accompli before NATO can react. That will mean he will need 30-40,000 Russian and Belarus troops. His assumption is that once the Baltics have gone, NATO will sue for peace. He might even send out some message assuring people in Western Europe this is just a limited operation in response to Russia's justified aims. Many won't buy that message, but enough will to cause hesitation.

 

If the Baltic states fall, then they won't be captured back. SO the key is if NATO get notice of Russian build up. And that's dependant on thr AWAC patrols. The is whether the US will continue to support AWAC patrols, or if they continue to share data. The data collected is fed back to the US, analysed, and spat back out again.

 

When the US stopped providing Ukraine with Intel, RAF Rivet Joint aircraft were stll flying, still capturing data, and the UK was still feeding data to Ukraine. But the data that was sent was more raw, because of the block imposed by Washington. Ukraine's artillary accuracy declined by 5-10%, similarly air to ground targets.

 

The key to defending the Baltics is not piling in loads of extra troops, but how NATO fights a war, which is to say, NATO fights very efficiently. Every shot literally counts. To achieve that takes data, a lot of it.

[NativeBob]

5 hours ago, worgeordie said:

He should just stick to trying to beat Ukraine into submission ,

before trying to take on NATO and rest of Europe  ,a NATO 

without our American friends I suppose ...

 

regards Worgeordie

Too late. Seems Trump gave up on UA, or bluffing with a pocket face. Obviously He won't get even $100K back. No way: ports, infrastructure and obviously not that ridiculous rare earth elements deal.

[Cameroni]

8 hours ago, Will B Good said:

 

So true.....these incidents were just a bit of larking about.......

 

1. 

Cyberattacks (e.g., Estonia, 2007)

Estonia was hit by a massive wave of cyberattacks in 2007, which targeted government, banking, and media websites. These attacks followed a decision to relocate a Soviet-era war memorial, and though Russia denied involvement, evidence pointed to state-sponsored actors or Kremlin-aligned groups.

 

2. 

Airspace Violations and Military Provocations

Russian military aircraft have repeatedly violated Baltic airspace, prompting NATO jets to scramble regularly. Russian naval activity in the Baltic Sea is also closely monitored and has caused concern due to aggressive maneuvers.

Russia has held military exercises near the Baltic borders that simulate scenarios involving conflict with NATO forces, which is seen as threatening by Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.

 

3. 

Disinformation and Hybrid Tactics

Russia has used disinformation campaigns to stir ethnic tensions, particularly in Estonia and Latvia, where there are sizable Russian-speaking minorities.

Russian media and online platforms have attempted to undermine trust in democratic institutions and sow division within these countries.

 

4. 

Economic Pressure

Russia has at times used energy supply manipulation or trade restrictions as a form of pressure, although the Baltic states have worked hard to reduce dependence on Russian energy since the 2000s.

 

5. 

Political Threats and Rhetoric

Russian officials have made statements that question the legitimacy of NATO’s presence in the Baltics or that suggest the Baltics are part of Russia’s “sphere of influence.”

There’s been frequent rhetoric in Russian media implying the Baltic states are hostile or even Nazi-sympathetic, especially in the context of their WWII history.

 

6. 

Response to NATO Expansion

Russia has strongly opposed NATO’s military presence in the Baltic region, viewing it as a threat. NATO battlegroups have been stationed in the Baltics since 2017 to deter aggression, which Moscow frames as “encirclement.”

 

How do you not die of embarassment posting claptrap like this, is what I'd like to know.

 

Because there was a cyberattack on Estonia, for which there is not a shred of evidence mind you that it was the Russian government, Putin intends to invade Estonia? 

 

So I guess China intends to invade the US then? Since there were Chinese cyberattacks on the USA?

 

I mean seriously, how do you get out of bed in the morning?

 

Trade restrictions? So the US is basically going to invade the entire world then? I mean I literally cannot believe you would post such flimsy transparent non-evidence.

 

Again the question is does Russia intend to invade the Baltics? The resounding clear answer is "NO". There is absolutely zero chance.

 

Airspace violations? So Russia is also planning to invade England and Scotland then? I mean do you actually believe the utter drivel that you write? This is what I'd like to know.

[NoDisplayName]

10 minutes ago, Cameroni said:

So the US is basically going to invade the entire world then?

 

No, just Canada and Greenland and Panama and Syria and Iran and Mexico and Cuba and Yemen and......and that's just this month!

[Cameroni]

40 minutes ago, NoDisplayName said:

 

No, just Canada and Greenland and Panama and Syria and Iran and Mexico and Cuba and Yemen and......and that's just this month!

 

So not the entire wold then.

 

Okay.