Russian troops will be defeated if they start an attack against the Baltic countries. This was stated by the commander of the NATO combat group in Latvia Canadian lieutenant colonel Jesse Van Eike, reports The Canadian Press.
“I think we would have won by a wide margin,” he told reporters. The lieutenant colonel is convinced that his troops are better prepared and more experienced. Under his command in the Adji camp in Latvia, more than 1,200 soldiers from 10 countries of the bloc train as a single combat group.
He used to talk about the Russian army as one of the most powerful and well -equipped in the world, but against the backdrop of military failures in Ukraine, the opinion changed.
“Initially, the impression was that the Russians would be faster, but they could not cope with the stated tasks. So the pace of this operation, if it takes place, will depend on what forces the Russians will actually abandon us,” Jesse believes Van Eik. He noted that NATO knows a lot about the Russian troops near the Latvian border: from their number and degree of combat readiness to the daily routine.
According to him, the war in Ukraine reduced the level of threat to Russian for Latvia. “The number of resources that the Russians have now invested in Ukraine and lose there quickly reduces their ability to do something at this theater,” he said.
However, it would be reckless not to take into account the military on the other side of the border, the lieutenant colonel notes. According to him, the future actions of the Russian army depend on the Russian President Vladimir Putin, so the threat of the Baltic countries remains real.