WW3 Watch: NATO creating "credible deterrent" in Europe, despite some problems

The past several Steemit posts have focused on wars with Russia and China. It's entirely possible that the most likely next war -- the one with North Korea -- turns into a global one. Hence, going forward, I'm starting World War 3 Watch to describe how this conflict is shaping up.

“It is a complex area, and Russia intends to keep it that way,” Brig. Gen. Tate says of the situation in Europe. Earlier this year, NATO made the decision to rotate an additional Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB) to the region in order to create a “credible deterrent” against Russia, although its effectiveness is in question.

“There are unique requirements in Europe that our [combat aviation brigades] are not equipped with or prepared for… [T]he forgotten art of camouflage is something we’d better start getting smart with really quick,” Brig. Gen. Tate said. “We will not have big aviation [forward operating bases] that will be unthreatened anywhere in Europe if we get into a fight with Russia.”

It should be noted that the rotational CAB lacks a heavy armed reconnaissance squadron, so they’re missing two unmanned aerial systems in the fight for which they're preparing.

Despite some problems, one Army colonel said, “[T]he benefit of having 10th CAB in theater with the voracious exercise schedule that we have is each of those battalions is going to participate in enough training at the platoon and company and battalion task force level where they’re truly building readiness.”

@culper is a former intelligence analyst who now tracks the risk of war.