Russia Preparing For Confrontation with US & Nato?

Russia Preparing For Confrontation with US & Nato?

www.guardian.co.uk

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Russia announced an overhaul of its strategic nuclear forces and army yesterday, in the clearest sign yet that Moscow may be preparing for a possible full-scale military confrontation with the US and Nato.

Speaking after Russia carried out its biggest military exercises since the cold war, Dmitry Medvedev, the president, said Russia would build a space defence system and a fleet of nuclear submarines by 2020.

This summer's brief war with Georgia, which led to a further rift between Moscow and the west, showed the need for Russia to have a strong military in a state of "permanent readiness", Medvedev said.

His defence initiative is the biggest in Russia for at least a decade. It comes amid bitter opposition from Moscow to Washington's plan to site a missile defence system in central Europe - a project the Kremlin says upsets Europe's strategic balance. The move is also a riposte to US-backed plans for Georgia and Ukraine to join Nato.

Moscow opposes Nato's further expansion, arguing that it challenges its regional "privileged interests". Moscow also accuses the US of encouraging, and even participating in, Georgia's attack on the breakaway enclave of South Ossetia.

"Just recently we had to rebuff aggression unleashed by the Georgian regime. As we discovered, a local smouldering conflict - even occasionally a frozen one - can flare up into a genuine war," Medvedev said, addressing Russian troops.

He said Russia needed a "guaranteed nuclear deterrent system" in place by 2020. The armed forces had to be prepared for "various political and military scenarios," he warned.

He promised large-scale construction of warships, including nuclear submarines armed with cruise missiles, and also announced plans for a system of air and space defence. The president promised to improve living conditions for Russian soldiers, as well as better military education and training.

He was speaking after watching an military exercise in the southern Urals. Yesterday one leading analyst said the exercise - which involved 40,000 troops, 7,300 pieces of heavy equipment and nuclear-capable missiles - was designed to simulate a war with the US.

"This is very significant. Right now the present Russian leadership believes that a war with Nato is very much possible," Pavel Felgenhauer, a Moscow-based defence analyst, told the Guardian. "This is the first time since the collapse of the Soviet Union that the Russian military is actually preparing for an all-out nuclear war with America."

He added: "I believe we [the Russians] are sending the west a serious message. The message is treat us with respect, and if you don't go into our backyard we won't go into yours. Russia wants to divide the world into spheres of influence. If not, we will prepare for nuclear war."

Felgenhauer said Russia's military was old but still effective. "Our military is backward in its development. But we still have a sizeable nuclear potential. It can kill a hell of a lot of people," he said.

Russia's conflict with Georgia worsened tensions with the US that had been building since Vladimir Putin, a former KGB spy and Medvedev's predecessor, came to power in 2000 and began reasserting Russia's status as a world power.

Russia's military endured years of under-funding following the collapse of the Soviet Union, with its warships and aircraft sitting idle for long periods. Analysts say the nuclear deterrent did not suffer the same neglect.

The Kremlin, now sitting on a large cash pile after several years of high oil and gas prices, has already injected large sums into reviving the military.

Putin, now prime minister, announced earlier this month that nearly $95bn (£51.5bn) would be allocated to defence and security in 2009. That is a 27% increase on the previous year.

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This is scary!This is my first post.I hope i'm doing it right.Hope you like it.Could it happen?Iknow there is alot going on in the world right now.Tensions are riseing between these's two countrys.What do you guys think about this artical?Pretty interesting huh??!I think that it will take one more event to really set it off between theses two.I don't know maybe something to do with georgia or something.

www.guardian.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)

nice article - looks like russia really is trying to pick a fight. the article below is a must-read. it puts a lot into perspective. like despration.

www.globalsecurity.org...

Welcome to ATS

As for Russia gearing up for war with NATO, IMO I think it's unlikely. The U.S. has been playing the "But I'm not touching you'' game with Russia for years.

If you're not familiar by what I mean, its like two siblings sitting in the backseat of the car. One torments the other by holding their finger half an inch from the others face. The other sibling gets agitated and complains but the aggressor sibling always claims ''but I'm not touching you!!!!''

Russia has had enough and is responding. There was lots of unfounded hysteria when Russia announced it was having military excercises in Venezuela. Many Americans seem to forget the countless military excercises America has had right on Russia's border.

I wouldn't doubt a Cold War 2.0 coming on, but I highly doubt a hot war as a Cold war has much more benefits. And by benefits, I mean $$$$$.