We Must Prepare For War With Russia: Ex-NATO Commander

As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine hits its 64th day, a former NATO commander urged the West to prepare for a “worst case” scenario, which is war with Russia, Niamh Cavanagh reported for Yahoo News.

Photo Insert: UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Thursday visited areas around Kyiv that were formerly held by Russian forces and met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Thursday visited areas around Kyiv that were formerly held by Russian forces. “The war is evil,” he said while standing beside destroyed apartment blocks in the town of Borodyanka.

Standing outside burned-out apartment blocks on Thursday, Guterres said: “When I see those destroyed buildings ... I imagine my family in one of those houses that is now destroyed and black. I see my granddaughters running away in panic.”

He added: “The war is an absurdity in the 21st century. The war is evil. And when you see these situations, our heart of course stays with the victims, our condolences to their families. But our emotions are ... there is no way a war can be acceptable in the 21st century.”

In response to comments made by the U.K. foreign secretary over the West's needing to “double down” on its support for Ukraine, former NATO commander Richard Shirreff told BBC Radio 4’s “Today” program it was “absolutely the right approach” and that “it’s got to be followed through with significant resources, and it’s got to be done right across the alliance as a whole.”

Shirreff, formerly a NATO deputy strategic commander for Europe, went on to caution that the Kremlin is likely to respond to this aggressively and that the West should be prepared for a worst-case scenario.

“The worst case is war with Russia,” he said. “By gearing itself up for the worst case, it is most likely to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin because ultimately Putin respects strength.”

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