Hundreds of thousands of Vladimir Putin’s troops are being amassed on NATO borders as 2026 shapes up to be a ‘critical’ year for European peace, ex-German army official Roderich Kiesewetter said
Russia is massing ‘over 360,000’ troops near Europe’s borders as Vladimir Putin plots his next move, a former NATO official has said.
German lawmaker and ex-military man Roderich Kiesewetter said 2026 is shaping up to be one of the most “critical” in recent European history as Putin’s forces begin to shift more and more personnel into Belarus, signalling potential military ambitions beyond Ukraine.
According to the Kremlin, over 400,000 new recruits have joined the Russian army this year – beating the target set by the president in January – while military analysts abroad have raised the alarm over “unprecedentedly intense” winter training of units across the nation in recent weeks.
Speaking to German broadcaster n-tv, Mr Kiesewetter said Russia’s two army corps in Belarus – amounting to 350,000 to 360,000 combat-ready soldiers – appeared to be one of the most concerning developments.
“This is worrying, especially in the Baltic states”, he said, adding that the fact Putin has trained “hundreds of thousands of soldiers who are never deployed in Ukraine” showed Russia had been transformed into a war economy dependent on constant mobilisation for conflict.
He added that governments across Europe will need to alert their populations as to the growing risk of war ahead of a “critical” two years ahead for the continent, and said “survival” would come “not just through our ability to defend ourselves, and also by not frightening our population, but rather saying: ‘Attention, this could happen, let’s be careful’.”
It comes after the head of Britain’s military warned that more British families will come to “know what sacrifice for our nation means” as the country prepares for the risk of war with Russia.
Chief of the Defence Staff Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton said “sons and daughters” needed to be ready to fight to protect the UK, while schools should encourage children to take up jobs in the arms industry.
Sir Richard said that although there was only a remote chance of a direct Russian attack on the UK that “does not mean the chances are zero”.
Speaking at a Royal United Services Institute event in Westminster last night, he said: “Sons and daughters. Colleagues. Veterans will all have a role to play. To build. To serve. And if necessary, to fight. And more families will know what sacrifice for our nation means.”
It follows recent comments from French Chief of Defence Staff Fabien Mandon, who last month said his country must be prepared to “lose its children” in a potential war, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who warned allies to prepare for a global conflict similar to what their “grandparents or great-grandparents endured” in World War II.