Thread: Top NATO official calls on business leaders to prepare for 'wartime scenario'

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - A top NATO military official on Monday urged businesses to be prepared for a wartime scenario and adjust their production and distribution lines accordingly, in order to be less vulnerable to blackmail from countries such as Russia and China.


"If we can make sure that all crucial services and goods can be delivered no matter what, then that is a key part of our deterrence," the chair of NATO's military committee, Dutch Admiral Rob Bauer, said in Brussels.

Speaking at an event of the European Policy Centre think tank, he described deterrence as going far beyond military capability alone, since all available instruments could and would be used in war.


"We're seeing that with the growing number of sabotage acts, and Europe has seen that with energy supply," Bauer said.


"We thought we had a deal with Gazprom, but we actually had a deal with Mr Putin. And the same goes for Chinese-owned infrastructure and goods. We actually have a deal with (Chinese President) Xi (Jinping)."


Bauer noted western dependencies on supplies from China, with 60% of all rare earth materials produced and 90% processed there. He said chemical ingredients for sedatives, antibiotics, anti-inflammatories and low blood pressure medicines were also coming from China.


"We are naive if we think the Communist Party will never use that power. Business leaders in Europe and America need to realise that the commercial decisions they make have strategic consequences for the security of their nation," Bauer stressed.


"Businesses need to be prepared for a wartime scenario and adjust their production and distribution lines accordingly. Because while it may be the military who wins battles, it's the economies that win wars."

MSN

Germany draws up list of bunkers amid Russia tensions

Germany is drawing up a list of bunkers that could provide emergency shelter for civilians, the interior ministry has said, at a time of rising tensions with Russia.


The list would include underground train stations and car parks as well as state buildings and private properties, a ministry spokesperson said.

A digital directory of bunkers and emergency shelters will be drawn up so people can find them quickly using a planned phone app. People would also be encouraged to create protective shelters in their homes by converting basements and garages, the spokesperson told a press briefing.


He declined to give a timetable, saying it was a big project that would take some time, involving the Office of Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance and other authorities.

The country of 84 million people has 579 bunkers, mostly from the second world war and the cold war era, which can provide shelter for 480,000 people, down from about 2,000 bunkers previously.


The spokesperson said the key points of the plan were agreed at a conference of senior officials in June and a special group was looking into it.


Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, concerns have been growing about Moscow’s potential to target other Nato members. In October, German intelligence chiefs warned that Russia would probably be capable of launching an attack on the military alliance by 2030.

German officials say the country is already experiencing a sharp rise in Russian spying and sabotage activities. Last week the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, said the conflict in Ukraine had characteristics of a “global” war and he did not rule out strikes on western countries.

Germany draws up list of bunkers amid Russia tensions | Germany | The Guardian

I’m feeling a tad sick reading Western news this morning.

Plane Operated by DHL Downed in Mystery Crash That Killed One Person

Authorities in Lithuania are refusing to rule out the possible involvement of Putin’s intel operatives after a DHL cargo jet smashed into a house in the country, killing one person.


The Kremlin has reportedly launched a bizarre campaign of terror, targeting DHL across Europe, including allegedly placing incendiary devices hidden in packages that were due to be loaded into cargo planes operated by the courier company, which was founded in San Francisco.

The Boeing jet which crashed Monday started its journey in Leipzig, Germany. The city has been the site of three previous attacks apparently orchestrated by Kremlin agents. In July, on three separate days, fires broke out in packages bound for a DHL cargo plane due to leave the city.


On Monday, the DHL cargo plane lost control on approach to Vilnius Airport in the Lithuanian capital and—just a mile from the runway—skidded through a wooded area before smashing into the two-storey building at around 5.30am local time Monday (22:30 Sunday EST).

One person, a male crew member, died. The two pilots and all of the residents in the house survived. “‘I saw a fireball,” a witness told an AP reporter at the scene. “My first thought is that a world (war) has begun.”

Lithuanian Police Commissioner General Arunas Paulauskas said investigators are considering the possibility of a terrorist act. “This is one of the versions that must be studied and checked,” he said.


The incident follows suspicious blazes that targeted courier companies in Poland, Germany and the U.K. as part of a Europe-wide campaign against infrastructure which Western intelligence agencies believe is being orchestrated by Russian operatives.


Polish authorities went on the record to confirm that they believed foreign intelligence saboteurs were involved in the bizarre firebomb plots. Prosecutor Katarzyna Calów-Jaszewska said earlier this month that bad actors had been involved in sending parcels containing hidden explosives and dangerous materials.


As far as the most recent incident goes, outgoing Lithuanian prime minister, Ingrida Simonyte, has urged people not to point the finger.

“In the current geopolitical context, we look at every incident differently than before, but I ask you to refrain from jumping to conclusions,” she said in a statement on social media.


The police commissioner said it was too early to say what brought the plane down but said it was more likely something less nefarious than a Russian attack. Reports so far suggest there was no evidence of an explosion before the plane went down.

Plane Operated by DHL Downed in Mystery Crash That Killed One Person

Well something went very awry at the last minute.

Nufilmuotas lėktuvo kritimas Vilniuje | Video | 15min.lt

Originally Posted by misskit

Bauer noted western dependencies on supplies from China

For those who haven't noticed, China is ahead of the game. After Trump's last presidency they have reduced very significantly their reliance on US soyabean, corn and energy.

Meanwhile, the UK is trying to screw over its farmers, which might become unimportant because post-Brexit they already struggle to pick what they grow without foreign workers. In a conflict, the UK could be unable to feed itself. Squirrel pie, anyone?

Originally Posted by Shutree

Squirrel pie, anyone?

Ah you have missed the cunning plan, with so many natives enjoying Greek, Leb, Chinese and of course Curry the migrants may be on the menu@ TomcatRobinsonpooners.

Luckily unlike WW2 most could live off their fat until the stores empty.
There is enough land , hunting shooting fishing, worm fricasse, snail cake, although oft eschewd seagull sorbet then BBQ'd inmates all washed down with Britush Sherry and a Wagon wheel made of old CDs!!

PS Herrick very good

Originally Posted by Shutree

Squirrel pie, anyone?

How to upset Cyrille without really trying, you'll be on the spellchecking hitlist before you can say Syb ILL?