VLADIMIR Putin has warned Europe he is “ready right now” for a war – but how could the tyrant really launch an attack and what would be the chilling first signs?
A former senior British military intelligence officer and Nato planner broke down the telltale tactics from assassination plots on foreign soil to debilitating cyber attacks.
Ahead of a crunch meeting with Donald Trump‘s top peace delegation in Moscow on Tuesday, Putin started spouting chilling threats at Europe.
War-hungry Putin raged that Russia is “ready right now” to fight the entire Nato entingment on the continent should they involve themselves in the Ukraine war.
Mad Vlad hinted Russia was ready for World War Three saying: “We’re not going to fight Europe, but if Europe wants to fight us, we’re ready right now.”
The despot also said that European powers were making demands on a possible peace settlement for Ukraine that Moscow considers absolutely unacceptable.
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Putin has irked the West for more than two-and-a-half decades now ever since he rose through the ranks in the Kremlin.
But his illegal invasion of neighbours Ukraine was the despot’s most despicable move yet.
Almost four years of war later and Vlad remains bloodthirsty – with western powers, led by France and the UK, beginning to step up to Russia.
A powerful European rhetoric has been met with sweeping sanctions, a boost in weapons being sent to Ukraine and a much closer relationship with Kyiv in recent months than ever before.
But as the allied nations grow in strength, Putin – a man with a history of trying to crush those who oppose him – has appeared to take note.
Philip Ingram told The Sun there will be a few key signs of continental disruption which Nato officials will have their eye on.
He said: “The signs that we may see if Putin is ready to strike are simply an increase in activity, an increase in cyber activity, an increase in sabotage type activity and an increase in what’s going on in the information domain.”
Another key flashpoint which could spark all-out war in Europe is Kaliningrad and the Suwalki Gap.
It has long been touted as Nato’s Achilles heel and the point that may be most at risk, says Ingram.
The gap is a narrow 60 mile long strip of land between Poland and Lithuania – and it is the shortest distance between the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad and Vlad’s ally Belarus.
Seizing the gap would essentially cut off the Baltic States of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia from their Nato allies.
Ingram said: “The most vulnerable area is Kaliningrad, and he [Putin] would potentially stimulate some form of support to a Belarusian attack through the Suwalki Gap.
“We’re seeing increased Russian military presence in Kaliningrad and Belarus, we’re seeing snap military drills and unusual troop movements.
“We’ve got hybrid warfare with GPS jamming, sabotage of undersea cables, and little green men… fermenting unrest amongst the Russian speaking minorities.
“However, that would be attacking directly into two NATO countries and therefore would potentially invoke Article 5.”
Ingram believes instead that Putin is most likely to build up his attacks against Europe rather than launching a full-scale offensive all at once.
This would minimise the risk of Nato banding together to launch retaliatory strikes.
He explained: “Russia does not have the conventional combat power at the moment to attack a Nato country and therefore from a conventional attack perspective, we are safe.
“But Russia are able to launch an unconventional attack which could happen through the use of a rogue missile or rogue drones, cyber warfare or cutting internet pipes or energy pipelines under the sea.”
Europe reacts to Putin’s ‘war ready’ comments
EUROPE has been warned its “destiny is on the line” over the Ukraine peace talks after Putin claimed he is “ready right now” for World War Three with the whole continent.
Ukraine’s closest allies have been told they must demand Vlad and his cronies are held accountable for stalling peace efforts.
British PM Sir Keir Starmer accused the despot of “dragging his feet” over a peace deal as he spoke in the Commons.
The Prime Minister vowed to do “as much damage to the Russian economy as we can” through punishing sanctions and also by supporting Ukraine unequivocally.
Dozens of top foreign Nato officials flew over to Brussels for a summit which has been dominated by the peace talks.
Ministers have been speaking about the past 24 hours with many voicing their grave concerns for what an anti-Ukraine deal could mean for the continent.
Norway’s foreign minister, Espen Barth Eide, warned: “Europe’s destiny is on the line.
“We all want this war to end, and we welcome peace efforts, but it’s imperative that the outcome is a just and lasting peace for Ukraine.”
As Finland’s foreign minister, Elina Valtonen, blasted Russia for being “not willing to compromise”.
Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte played down Putin’s WW3 rhetoric but did say the alliance must keep up their support for Ukraine.
He said the best way to force Putin to agree to a fair peace deal would be to make his men’s lives on the battlefield as tough as possible.
The stronger position Russia is in on the frontline the stronger position they take to the negotiating table.
Rutte urged European leaders to keep sending their best weapons to Kyiv so they can defend themselves as best as possible and hold onto territory.
This message has already been acted on with Norway, Poland and Germany all pledging another £377m ($500m) to buy weapons for Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha blasted Putin for wasting the world’s time.
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper added the Russian tyrant should “end the bluster and the bloodshed”.
The ex-army man warns that Russia has already been pulling off these style of attacks across the past few years.
Putin has been terrorising Europe with a campaign of sabotage and airspace violations for years, and his shadow operation only appears to be ramping up.
Various fires and explosions – including a blaze at an east London Ukrainian-owned warehouse – have been pinned on the tyrant.
Recent cases also include the severing of undersea cables in the Baltic Sea and a string of cyber-hack attacks across the continent.
Ingram also notes that Putin could put Russia and Europe on a warpath through a deadly assassination.
The defence expert says the Novichok attack on Sergei Skripal in Salisbury in 2018 would be the exact sort of measure a desperate Vlad could take if he feels threatened.
The individual targeted would tell a lot about Putin’s true war ambitions, Ingram notes.
A big name on the political stage being poisoned by the Kremlin could be enough to provoke an immediate response from Nato.
Any ramping up of continental disruption would ultimately act as a warning shot that Russia is not to be messed with and that they can get to virtually anyone on the continent.
But Putin could also be looking to simply test the alliance and force them into making a move.
“Putin’s trying to scare people, he’s trying to create fractures in alliances whether that be Europe and the US, the UK and the US or the UK and Europe,” Ingram says.
The Russian despot could do this by attacking out at sea.
Ingram explains: “Putin might try more advanced grey zone attacks against military targets operating in the Baltic Sea, in the Atlantic or somewhere else – potentially on a Western warship.”
One of the most devastating options Putin could choose is through a terrorist-style attack against Western military bases.
A direct hit on a nation’s troops or its weaponry would be a clear chess move by Russia.
It would be the Kremlin asserting their position as disrupters as they ask Nato to make their move.