{"id":14102,"date":"2021-04-15T18:08:07","date_gmt":"2021-04-15T18:08:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2021\/04\/15\/eucom-chief-warns-nato-ready-to-respond-to-aggression\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T20:01:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T20:01:12","slug":"eucom-chief-warns-nato-ready-to-respond-to-aggression","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/congress\/2021\/04\/15\/eucom-chief-warns-nato-ready-to-respond-to-aggression\/","title":{"rendered":"US commander warns NATO is ready to respond to aggression"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

WASHINGTON \u2015 Amid Russia\u2019s massive troop buildup along its border with Ukraine, the top U.S. commander in Europe warned Thursday that NATO was prepared to respond to aggression.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe deter, and if deterrence fails, we\u2019re prepared to respond to aggression with the full weight of the trans-Atlantic alliance,\u201d Gen. Tod Wolters<\/a> said during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on the region. Wolters is U.S. European Command\u2019s chief and NATO\u2019s supreme allied commander for Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The comments came amid heightened tension between Washington and Moscow, which has more troops on the Ukraine border than at any time since 2014. Also this week, the Biden administration hit Russia with sanctions and diplomatic expulsions in response to its SolarWinds cyberattack and ongoing occupation of Crimea, which Russia seized and then annexed from Ukraine in March 2014.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe president is taking hard and fast action with appropriately tailored responses to provide a clear signal of our resolve without escalation,\u201d Laura Cooper, the Pentagon\u2019s policy lead for Russia, told the panel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. and its allies have sounded the alarm about the concentration of Russian troops along the border with Ukraine and increasing violations of a cease-fire in eastern Ukraine, where Russian-ba\u0441ked separatists and Ukrainian forces have been locked in a conflict since the annexation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wolters said it is \u201cof great concern, and our vigilance is high,\u201d as a \u201cvery, very large\u201d ground force had moved near Crimea and Donbass, with shifts in air and maritime forces as well. He added that Russia\u2019s efforts to move supply lines forward had, however, \u201cplateaued.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wolters assessed the chance of Russia invading Ukraine as \u201clow to medium,\u201d adding that the \u201clikelihood would start to wane.\u201d He declined to publicly share a more detailed assessment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The comments came as Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said<\/a> Tuesday that the country\u2019s massive military buildup in the west was part of readiness drills amid what he described as threats from NATO. He said they would last for another two weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The White House said U.S. President Joe Biden voiced concern over the Russian buildup and \u201ccalled on Russia to de-escalate tensions\u201d during a phone call Tuesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin.<\/p>\n\n\n\t