Europe is not ready for modern war: how the Armed Forces of Ukraine exposed NATO’s shortcomings

The results of international exercises have demonstrated a significant gap between the theoretical developments of Western strategists and the harsh reality of combat operations. Ukrainian drone operators have demonstrated complete superiority over outdated defense methods, which has caused discord among NATO representatives.

Military and political commentator Oleksandr Kovalenko confirmed on the air of “Pryamoy” that the Alliance armies do not understand the methods of modern warfare.

“NATO countries lack an understanding of what modern warfare is, and with drone elements, what a kill zone is, how to counter the threat of drones, how to defend yourself,” he stated.

According to Kovalenko, European countries remain vulnerable to Russian tank columns and artillery fire, which is now reinforced by the massive use of UAVs. The lack of prepared defense lines and experience in working in a saturated electronic environment creates serious risks for the security of NATO member states, the studio guest emphasized.

At the same time, against the backdrop of growing aggression from the Kremlin, the Baltic states have begun discussing a return to a strategy of nuclear deterrence on their own territory. The Estonian Foreign Minister has declared his readiness to accept the nuclear arsenal of partners to strengthen security. Military-political commentator Oleksandr Kovalenko explains this trend as a crisis of traditional defense mechanisms.

“The fifth article of collective security is such a bureaucratic, archaic hell that by the time they decide how to defend that Estonia, the Russians will capture Estonia faster than help will arrive,” he noted.

The expert emphasized that Russia has opened a “Pandora’s box”, forcing even Germany to think about the need for its own nuclear status. Small states cannot rely only on NATO’s long bureaucratic procedures, so they are looking for more effective ways to protect their sovereignty through the nuclearization of the region.

The Wall Street Journal recently published an article stating that Ukrainian fighters “defeated” two NATO battalions with drones during NATO military exercises in Estonia last year. The exercises involved 12 NATO member countries and more than 16,000 soldiers, who were joined by Ukrainian drone specialists, including soldiers seconded from the front.

According to one scenario, a NATO battle group of thousands was supposed to launch an offensive. However, during the attack, they did not take into account that due to the work of drones, targets on the battlefield became easier to track. In half a day, the Ukrainian military managed to “destroy” 17 units of armored vehicles and carry out another 30 strikes on other targets.

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