Putin Says Russia Must Strengthen as ‘Aggressive’ NATO Approaches

Russia must boost its combat readiness at a time when NATO is expanding and moving its infrastructure towards Russia’s borders, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday.

“NATO is strengthening its aggressive rhetoric and its aggressive actions near our borders,” Putin said in a speech in the lower house of parliament, Reuters reported.

“In these conditions, we are duty-bound to pay special attention to solving the task of strengthening the combat readiness of our country.”

On June 7, NATO launched exercises codenamed “Anakonda-16,” which simulated a Russian attack on Poland.

The two-week-long drills involved some 31,000 troops, including 14,000 from the United States, 12,000 from Poland and 1,000 from Britain, as well as dozens of fighter jets and ships, along with 3,000 vehicles.