Putin has four more targets to conquer

Following the war in Ukraine, Vladimir Putin may now be setting his sights on four additional countries, as the Russian government appears increasingly ready to invoke its colonial past to "justify" future acts of aggression—even against NATO members.

In response, NATO countries that share a border with Russia have begun significantly boosting their defense capabilities in anticipation of a potential invasion.

Officials have warned that the Kremlin could opt for a hybrid war strategy, targeting critical infrastructure, launching cyberattacks, or sabotaging undersea cables rather than initiating a full-scale conventional assault.

However, under NATO’s Article 5, an attack against one member is considered an attack against all, requiring collective defense from the alliance.

In a recent interview with Russian outlet Kommersant, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said it was "dangerous" that "fascists" now control territories that, in his words, “never belonged to anyone except the Russian Empire, the Soviet Union.”

According to the U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW), these remarks suggest that Russia sees former territories of the Russian Empire or Soviet Union as “rightfully” belonging to modern-day Russia.

(QG - Source: Newsweek  - Picture : © Unsplash)