“Whether it likes it or not, Europe is at war”, declared Thursday, February 24 on franceinfo General Jérôme Pellistrandi, editor-in-chief of National Defense, after the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. Another military expert, the former head of the French military mission to the UN Dominique Trinquand, believes for his part that “War is no longer cold, it’s a hot war”. “Vladimir Putin deceived everyone. We thought that war in Europe was no longer possible. He demonstrates the opposite. We are dealing with an extremely violent aggressor state, the second largest military power in the world, a nuclear power.”
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For Jérôme Pellistrandi, “February 24, 2022 becomes a historic date” with this “major conflict” who starts “in the heart of Europe”. “There are the Baltic States and Poland which are in contact with this war zone, that is what is extremely worrying. Especially since Vladimir Putin threatens the other countries with reprisals if they react.” He is asking himself “if Putin wants to go all the way to Kiev and impose regime change”. “The Russian army has the means but there is no possible certainty”
The Ukrainians are going to want to defend themselves at all costs. They will be able to slow down the Russians but in no way stop them.
Jerome Pellistrandifranceinfo
If the Russian strategy is to “strike hard and brutally using aviation to bomb high-value targets like power plants or military airfields”the editor of National Defense regrets that there is already “collateral damage”. “Buildings occupied by civilian populations are hit and when you see the traffic jams of people who want to flee Kiev, it is already collateral damage.”
“Vladimir Putin is physically breaking Ukraine, but he also hopes to break it morally”, adds Dominique Trinquand on franceinfo. The former head of the French military mission to the UN analyzes: “It acts on the Donbass front, to expand the area controlled by Russian forces, but also in depth. It neutralizes airports, ammunition stocks and probably means of communication. Its objective is to demilitarize Ukraine for the to flatten.” According to him, “Putin’s first speech in which he announced that Ukraine did not exist was symptomatic of what was to come”.
For Dominique Trinquand, NATO could almost “say thank you to Mr Putin who brings it back to life”. “NATO will probably send troops to reinforce the borders. There have already been 3,000 American soldiers deployed in Poland, France had for its part proposed to deploy in Romania, and 40,000 men from the rapid reaction force NATO are on alert.” For Ukraine, on the other hand, “nothing is planned” since it is not part of the North Atlantic Treaty, he laments. “Which does not mean that we cannot support the Ukrainians with arms deliveries and training.”