A report by German tabloid Bild claiming that Russia is gearing up for an “open attack” on NATO is nothing but “a hoax,” Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov has said.
Bild said in article on Sunday that it had reviewed a secret German Defense Ministry document which provided a month-by-month outline of a possible “path to conflict” between Russia and the West.
According to the outlet, the scenario includes Moscow announcing a new mobilization, carrying out a successful offensive against Ukraine, stirring tensions in the Baltic states, building up its forces in border regions, staging provocations around the Suwalki Gap in northeast Poland, and eventually accusing the West of planning an attack against Russia.
The Bundeswehr’s sequence of events ends with NATO placing 300,000 troops – including 30,000 Germans – on its eastern flank for “credible deterrence,” Bild said. However, the tabloid suggested it would be an “open question” whether Russia would choose to stand down under such circumstances.
“I wouldn’t even comment on this report by Bild,” Peskov told journalists on Monday. “Recently, this outlet also doesn’t shy away from publishing various hoaxes.”
Earlier in the day, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova labeled the report “last year’s powerful zodiac forecast.” She suggested it was the German Foreign Ministry, headed by Annalena Baerbock, that had actually helped the Bundeswehr come up with such a scenario.
Bild addressed the German Defense Ministry for comment on Monday, and was told that “considering different scenarios, even if they are extremely unlikely, is part of everyday military practice, especially during training.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin said last month that Moscow “has no interest… geopolitically, economically or militarily... in waging war against NATO.” Russia is actually interested in improving ties with the US-led block, he stressed.
Russian officials have warned throughout the Ukraine conflict that the support provided to Kiev by the West merely prolongs the fighting and increases the risk of a direct confrontation between Moscow and NATO.