Due to the largest war in Europe since World War II, unleashed by dictator Putin, NATO countries decided to increase their armed forces. The plan calls for increasing troops to the “minimum necessary capability” to defend against Russian aggression.
At first glance, the plan looks great. It is planned to create 49 more brigades. That is, from the 82 existing brigades, the number of brigades will be increased to 131. Each brigade will consist of about 5000 soldiers. It is also planned to increase the number of combat corps from 6 to 15, and the number of division headquarters from 24 to 38. The total number of people will be increased by 250 thousand.
In addition, the NATO plans to increase its stockpile of weapons, including air defense systems, ammunition, precision weapons, and vehicles. In particular, the number of anti-aircraft systems should increase from 293 to 1467 units, including such systems as Patriot, Iris-T SLM and Skyranger. These requirements apply to all 32 NATO member states, and each country’s commitment will depend on its economic capacity and population.
But here, we Europeans have missed one very important point. This is how much will all this cost us?
I understand that many of us will start counting the cost of purchasing new equipment, monthly salaries for a quarter of a million military personnel, and infrastructure construction. But we need to take into account possible irreversible losses.
In this aggressive war, the Russians have already killed 31 thousand Ukrainian servicemen. This is only the officially announced data. In reality, the death toll may be much higher. There are many tens of thousands more wounded. Many thousands were captured or went missing. These are only the military. The information on civilians is very different, but according to the generalized data of the UN, the Russians killed 12 thousand Ukrainian civilians and wounded 25 thousand civilians.
Do any of us want to put any of our loved ones or relatives at risk? Are our EU officials ready to take responsibility for allowing similar losses among Europeans?
Lieutenant General Alexander Zolfrank, head of NATO’s logistics command, said that they are considering scenarios with heavy human losses. That is why they want to restore the hospital system and even use ambulance trains.
The Alliance expects tens of thousands of wounded and the inability to use air ambulances in the red zone due to the enemy’s strong air defense. Active plans are being formed to transfer tens of thousands of wounded for treatment to France, Spain, and Portugal.
Do you like this prospect?
For those who know how to count money, I suggest that you estimate how much European governments will have to pay in compensation for one dead citizen of their country. And how many wounded and maimed people will have to be compensated on a regular basis.
But we still have a chance to prevent this.
Ukraine has long been fighting exhausting and bloody battles with the Russian occupiers. The Ukrainian military inflicts huge losses on the enemy, but is forced to retreat due to a lack of equipment and ammunition.
We can give them everything they need. Ukrainian cities are suffering from Putin’s missile attacks. If NATO countries provide the necessary air defense systems, it would be easier for Ukrainians to start producing their own weapons.
By providing Ukrainians with airplanes, tanks and long-range missiles, we will provide ourselves with a greater level of security.
If Russia invades Ukraine, it could attack NATO countries in a few years. And then everyone will have to fight. It’s clear that the democratic world will defeat tyranny, but at what cost? Isn’t it more profitable for us to invest in victory now? So that Ukrainians repel the aggressor and peace reigns in Europe! What will be safer for us – when we have a common border with aggressive Russia? Or when a well-armed Ukrainian army stands like a powerful shield between the aggressor country and the European Union?
