Simultaneously so weak and incompetent that they can't take a village of 80 year olds but so scary that they'll go to war with like a fifth of the planet.
While there’s no clear evidence of plans to attack NATO, Russia is creating the conditions for it.
This is also a very telling sentence.
“There’s not evidence this is even on their minds or that they would ever attempt such a monumentally stupid move, buuut…just use your 🌈 imagination 💫”
NATO is not a monolithic defense shield. There are weak points that Russia can go after.
The Baltics are made up of very small nations that Russia even in its current state could roll through in a few days.
Once they take those countries they can just sit on them and declare that they will use nukes to defend them.
That leaves NATO in a very bad position militarily of having to retake those countries with the very real threat of nuclear war. It will test the resolve of Alliance members especially those who aren’t immediately adjacent to Russia and are not threatened by them militarily. Will they risk the lives of their people?
Combine that action with China trying to take Taiwan and a US that is not very reliable under Trump and it’s not nearly as cut and dry as you think it may be.
The Baltics are made up of very small nations that Russia even in its current state could roll through in a few days.
They thought that about Ukraine as well... It's 2025 and the Russian border is probably one of the most observed in the world right now. The chances of a Blitzkrieg style attack is nil.
That said if there was ever a time for the EU to start building up its war machine, that time is now.
No one can predict the future but Ukraine has caught Russia unprepared by rushing small but well equipped units to the front to take land during the Kursk offensive and then rush reinforcements in afterwards.
It’s not out of the realm of possibility for Russia to do the same in the Baltics.
I mean Russia is doing quite poorly. Even if the Ukrainian Army poofs out of existence today and gives Russian a leisurely stroll to the capital its still kind of a pyrrhic victory. They have done well to go in a war economy and have learned from their mistakes, but they are still punching under their expected weight.