Russian expert: NATO is an invader, not a defender

The Steadfast Defender 24 military exercise by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an act of aggression toward the East, according to a Russian expert, who said that the alliance calls itself a "defender" but is actually an "invader."  

NATO started its biggest military exercise in decades last week with around 90,000 personnel set to take part. According to officials, more than 50 ships from aircraft carriers to destroyers will feature, as well as more than 80 fighter jets, helicopters and drones and at least 1,100 combat vehicles including 133 tanks and 533 infantry fighting vehicles. 

The exercises come amid a stalemate in the Ukraine crisis, with wintery weather conditions freezing the battlefields after the two countries after almost two years of conflict. 

Alexey Podberezkin, a member of the Russian Academy of Military Sciences told the China Media Group (CMG) in a recent interview that NATO has begun to emphasize its "responsibilities" on a global scale, and it has become a global organization rather than a European organization. 

"This exercise can be seen as an aggression toward the East, rather than just a forceful approach to pressure Russia," said Podberezkin, adding that in the face of NATO's pressure, Russia is improving military equipment production.

"We are increasing the production of military equipment by two, three, five times," said Podberezkin, "We will have an adequate supply of new equipment in 2024."

NATO's drills, which are scheduled to run through May, will feature a series of smaller individual drills and will span from North America to NATO's eastern flank, close to the Russian border.

The exercises are designed to simulate an "emerging conflict scenario with a near-peer adversary." The organization didn't mention Russia by name in its announcement, but its top strategic document identifies Russia as the most significant and direct threat to NATO members' security.

The Kremlin said on Wednesday that Russia views NATO as a "threat" and is taking measures to deal with the alliance's large-scale military drills.

"The alliance has been moving its military infrastructure towards our borders for several decades without ceasing," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters when asked about the drills.

Podberezkin said the essence of the NATO exercises is that the U.S. is seeking to control global processes, "but the world situation has changed and is moving towards multi-polarity."

Experts warned that continuing to expand the most powerful military alliance in history toward another major power would not end well, and the exercise would only provoke confrontations and a return to Cold War patterns.

Martin Jacques, a British scholar, told CMG that NATO is making excuses for its eastward expansion by playing up the "Russia threat" rhetoric. He said that the organization claimed it was a self-defense alliance, but it had been expanding eastward and getting into lots of wars and conflicts.

"They are not defending themselves, but fighting for their interests," said Jacques.

Tarik Cyril Amar, a historian from Germany, said that NATO is laying down a narrative barrage and brainwashing the Western public that Moscow will launch an invasion of European NATO member states in the near future.

"In this sense, 'Steadfast Defender' is not merely a return to Cold War patterns but to the dark tone of its most virulent and dangerous phases," said Amar.

Britain also sent a massive military force to take part in the biggest drill since the Cold War. Jacques said the British government is shifting domestic conflicts through military means as the government is enduring persistent high inflation, weak external demand and complex geopolitical conflicts.

He suggested that the British government should put more resources into its economic development, public health system and education, rather than the military.