In a sobering and stark assessment of the ongoing conflict, a top former NATO commander has issued a grave warning that the world is entering one of the most perilous phases of the Ukraine war. Retired US Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, a seasoned military strategist and former chief of staff to the US National Security Council, believes Vladimir Putin is running out of options and may soon make a desperate gambit.
Kellogg's chilling analysis suggests the Russian president could deliberately initiate a direct military confrontation with a NATO member state. This calculated escalation, he argues, would be a strategic ploy to shatter Western unity and force Ukraine into negotiations on Moscow's harsh terms.
A Despot Backed Into a Corner
The retired general paints a picture of a weakened and frustrated Putin, whose military has suffered humiliating defeats and catastrophic losses. "He's not winning. He's losing. He's losing in the Donbas, he's losing overall," Kellogg stated unequivocally. This position of weakness, rather than strength, is what makes the situation so volatile and unpredictable.
Faced with the prospect of a protracted war of attrition that Russia cannot win, Kellogg fears Putin might resort to what he terms a "short, sharp war" with the West. The intended outcome would be to demonstrate the high cost of supporting Ukraine and frighten European populations into pressuring their leaders to abandon Kyiv.
The Looming Nuclear Spectre
Most alarmingly, Kellogg did not dismiss the potential for nuclear escalation. He cautioned that while Putin understands the devastating consequences of a full-scale nuclear exchange, he might authorise the use of a smaller, tactical nuclear weapon on the battlefield in Ukraine as the ultimate show of force.
This act would represent an unprecedented crossing of a red line, designed to test NATO's resolve and create unimaginable political shockwaves across the globe. The alliance's response would define the future of international security for decades to come.
A Unified Front: The West's Only Response
The central pillar of Kellogg's warning is a call for unwavering resolve. He emphatically stated that the West must not flinch in the face of such aggression. Any sign of hesitation or division within NATO would be seen as a victory for the Kremlin and would only embolden further aggression.
"The one thing that Putin has always done is he's always counted on the West ultimately blinking. We can't blink. We've got to be strong," Kellogg urged. His message is clear: the only way to prevent a wider war is to prepare for one definitively, leaving no doubt in Moscow's mind about the united and devastating response that would follow an attack on NATO soil.
