Warning: Attacks with many casualties

 

NATO
NATO summit's concern: Warns of Russian hybrid attack with many deaths

Emil Forsberg

Updated 18.26 | Published 18.22

Photo: Alexander Demyanchuk / AP

Russian hybrid attacks may be about to escalate, according to James Appathurai.

And the devastation could be great.

- It could cause a significant number of casualties, NATO summit tells Sky News.

The hybrid attacks that are now being carried out against NATO would never have been accepted five years ago, says James Appathurai, deputy head of innovation and hybrid and cyber attacks at NATO.

- We can count dozens, probably up to 100. We've kind of gotten used to it and it's dangerous, says Appathurai, who links the increase to the West's support for Ukraine.

- They don't like what we're doing, but they also see us as an enemy. And it's getting worse.

Asked if he was worried that a Russian hybrid attack would trigger NATO's Article 5 and result in a war against Russia, the NATO chief said:

- What really worries me is that one of these attacks will have major consequences.

Photo: Andrii Marienko / AP

He points to the 2018 Novichok assassination attempt on Russian double agent Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury, UK. The dose of the nerve agent was so high that it could have killed thousands of people.

- There is a real risk that one of these attacks will cause a significant number of casualties or very significant economic damage.

NATO is currently developing a new strategy to deal with the hybrid threat, says Appathurai. The last updated version is from 2015 when the threat looked very different.

- We want to establish a baseline now to prevent escalation and also work to reduce it to the level we had several years ago.

Appathurai says NATO must find its red lines when it comes to hybrid threats.

– We must decide how to communicate, even to the Russians, that there are no-go zones.