Russian Yars intercontinental ballistic missile launchers roll on Red Square (Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Russian forces will be ready to attack a NATO country “by the end of this decade at the latest”, intelligence chiefs warned.
Vladimir Putin has ordered a 25% increase in military spending to bolster his forces as his troops make creeping gains in eastern Ukraine.
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And Western intelligence chiefs fear the Russian tyrant will “continue to test the West’s red lines” amid a rise in sabotage and espionage conspiracies.
Bruno Kahl, the head of Germany’s foreign intelligence service, said the Kremlin wants to divide the West, weaken support for Ukraine and lay the ground for a potential war with NATO.
Russian tyrant Vladimir Putin is building up his forces again (Image: Getty Images)
A Russian attack on a NATO country would trigger the alliance's Article 5, dragging America and Britain into a war.
He said: “Putin will continue to test the West’s red lines and further escalate the confrontation.
“The Russian armed forces will probably be in a position, in terms of personnel and material, to launch an attack against NATO by the end of this decade at the latest.
"Whether we like it or not, we are in a direct confrontation with Russia.”
Russia’s Defence Ministry plans to enlist 133,000 young men for mandatory military service in the second half of this year, according to a decree signed by President Vladimir Putin.
Along with the 150,000 men drafted in the spring, the Russian military will have conscripted 283,000 men by the end of 2024
A direct confrontation between Moscow and the U.S.-led military alliance was "becoming an option for Russia," Kahl said.
Mr Kahl added that the Kremlin is drastically increasing military spending.
The latest planned increase in spending will take Russia’s defence budget to a record 13.5tn rubles (￡109bn) in 2025, up 25% on the previous year.
Mr Kahl added: “The focus of this buildup is, of course, in the strategic direction west along NATO’s eastern flank.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s ultimate aim, he said, is to “push the U.S. out of Europe” and to restore NATO boundaries of the late 1990s and create a “Russian sphere of influence”, establishing a “new world order.”
Moscow's campaign of disruption had grown from a storm to a "real hurricane" moving west, Germany's domestic intelligence chief Thomas Haldenwang said, noting that Germany's eastern neighbours Poland and the Baltic states faced an even more "brutal" threat.
Germany has been shaken by several cases of alleged spying for Russia and alleged acts of sabotage since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
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In April, investigators arrested two German-Russian men on suspicion of spying for Russia and planning attacks in Germany -- including on US army facilities -- to undermine military support for Ukraine.
Subsequently, a German military base was sealed off after a hole was discovered in the fence in a suspected act of sabotage, while trespassers have allegedly sought entry to NATO camps in the country.
The head of MI5, Ken McCallum, said Russia and Iran are on a mission to cause “mayhem” with an increase in arson, murder, kidnap and sabotage conspiracies.
Mr Haldenwang, echoed these warnings.
He said: "Russian espionage and sabotage in Germany are increasing, both qualitatively and quantitatively.”
He listed suspected sabotage activities, including a near-miss involving an exploding package and a DHL cargo plane.
The parcel burst into flames on the ground before being loaded into the plane, in what Haldenwang called a "lucky accident," without explicitly naming the suspected culprits.
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Russia was also engaged in disinformation campaigns, had deployed drones to spy on sensitive locations and was looking to recruit people, including from the world of organized crime, with offers of money, Haldenwang said.
There had also been a "significant increase" in espionage and sabotage activities from Russia targeting the German armed forces, the head of military intelligence Martina Rosenberg said.
Among the activities undertaken by Russia were "reconnaissance of German arms deliveries to Ukraine" as well as surveillance of military training and armaments projects, she said.