Kremlin Says Middle West Anti-Russian Policy Is at Breaking Point

JAKARTA - Western countries will put up resistance against Russia, as evidenced by the holding of large-scale military exercises held by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

"The strategy to hinder our country, to put pressure on our country, has not borne fruit. Sometimes it escalates, sometimes it subsides. Now it is probably at its peak. Such exercises are the best proof of this," he said on Channel One , reported by TASS, January 26.

Peskov pointed out that the West holds a very clear anti-Russian position, dictated by NATO, while the alliance's rhetoric is "determined abroad, in Washington."

"There is of course a real danger, just in strategic terms. You see the militaristic atmosphere that is happening at the moment in Europe, in the neighboring Baltic countries and so on. Countries filled with Russophobic tendencies are dragging in more and more military facilities, military equipment "This is of course a danger, requiring additional measures to ensure that the security of our country can be properly guaranteed," explained Peskov.

It is known that NATO is holding large-scale military exercises starting on January 24 and ending in May. This exercise is entitled 'Steadfast Defender 2024', said the alliance's top military commander, General Chris Cavoli, quoted by Reuters.

A total of 90,000 soldiers will be involved in this exercise. Meanwhile, the main weapons systems (Alutsista) deployed in this exercise include more than 50 ships ranging from aircraft carriers to destroyers, more than 80 fighter jets, helicopters and drones, as well as at least 1,100 combat vehicles including 133 tanks and 533 infantry fighting vehicles, NATO said.

This is NATO's largest military exercise after the Cold War era. The last exercise with more than its current participant size was 'Reforger' which was held during the Cold War in 1988 with 125,000 participants. Next came 'Trident Juncture' in 2018 with 50,000 participants, according to NATO.

Troops taking part in the drills, which will involve simulating sending personnel to Europe as well as field exercises, will come from NATO countries and Sweden, which hopes to join the alliance soon.

During the second part of the Steadfast Defender exercise, special focus will be placed on deploying NATO's rapid reaction force to Poland on the alliance's eastern flank.

Other key locations for the exercises are the Baltic states seen as most at risk from a potential Russian attack, Germany which is central to the reinforcements and countries on the fringes of the alliance such as Norway and Romania.