DISINFO: West is waging an undeclared war against Russia and Belarus
SUMMARY
NATO is using the crisis in Ukraine as a pretext to reinforce its forces in Eastern Europe and deploy weapons there. The US-led military bloc has already begun the next phase of its expansion and is now modernising its military infrastructure in Eastern and Central Europe.
The West is also doing their utmost to prolong and escalate the conflict in Ukraine by continuing to provide military assistance to the armed forces in Kyiv. Today, Russia and Belarus stand together against the collective West, which is essentially waging an undeclared war against them.
RESPONSE
This pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative tries to paint the West and NATO as aggressive forces, encircling and at war with Russia and Belarus. This claim was made in the context of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.
In reality, the West has not ceased making attempts at a diplomatic solution to the war in Ukraine virtually since the launch of Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified aggression (see here and here), but these efforts have come to a halt because of Moscow’s unconstructiveness. Peace can be achieved only if Russia agrees to Ukraine’s peace formula and stops the war.
Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Allies activated NATO’s defence plans and deployed thousands of extra troops from both sides of the Atlantic. Over 40,000 troops, along with significant air and naval assets, are now under direct NATO command in the eastern part of the Alliance, supported by hundreds of thousands more from Allies’ national deployments. NATO rapidly established four new multinational battlegroups in Bulgaria, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia, in addition to the existing battlegroups in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. The eight battlegroups extend all along NATO’s eastern flank, from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Black Sea in the south. At the Madrid Summit in June 2022, Allies agreed a fundamental shift in NATO’s deterrence and defence. This includes strengthening forward defences, enhancing the battlegroups in the eastern part of the Alliance up to brigade level, transforming the NATO Response Force and increasing the number of high-readiness forces to well over 300,000.
This however does not mean that a standing army of 300,000 soilders is on the border with Russia and Belarus, ready to attack them.
The West supports Ukraine with military and financial aid for the country’s efficient self-defence, in accordance with the UN Charter Article 51, to stop Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. Some EU and NATO member states provide Ukraine with military assistance to help Ukraine to defend itself from Russia’s attack, but they are not involved in direct fighting. Ukraine receives weapons with the sole aim of restoring its territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders. Western instructors train Ukrainian soldiers on how to use modern weaponry and EU officials have frequent political contacts with Ukrainian counterparts, but there are no EU troops fighting on the front. This support allows the Ukrainian armed forces to continue defending the country against the Russian aggression. There is no current plan or public debate about a possible peacekeeping mission to Ukraine.
Read more about the EU's response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine along with EU vs Disinfo's Guide to Deciphering Pro-Kremlin disinformation around Putin's War.