Russia to bulk up military on western borders amid NATO moves, Ukraine war

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Russia’s Defense Ministry said Friday it will beef up its military presence along its western borders by creating 12 new units in its Western Military District by the end of 2022.

Defense Minister Gen. Sergei Shoigu said the move was a direct response to Western military activities in the area that Moscow perceives as a threat.

"We are taking adequate countermeasures. Under these conditions, we are actively improving the combat composition of the troops. By the end of the year, 12 military units and subunits will be formed in the Western Military District," Shoigu told Russian news outlets.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, left, and Commander-in-chief of Ground Forces Oleg Salukov, center, attend the Victory Day Parade at Red Square on May 9, 2022, in Moscow. (Contributor/Getty Images)

The Army general claimed U.S. strategic aviation in Europe has increased 15-fold in recent months along with increased American naval visits to the Baltic Sea.

The announcement by the Russian general comes just days after Finland – which shares a border with Russia – and Sweden formalized their bids to join NATO’s military alliance.

Russia threatened to deploy hypersonic and nuclear warheads to its western borders last month in an attempt to dissuade Stockholm and Helsinki from joining the 30-nation alliance. 

Shoigu did not mention the specific deployment of these deadly missiles in his announcement Friday but said "the ongoing organizational measures are synchronized with the supply of modern weapons."

Russian President Vladimir Putin has long viewed NATO as Moscow’s chief threat, but his aggression in Ukraine -- originally intended to divide the alliance – has given it renewed vigor. 

NATO’s Military Committee announced Thursday that it was established a new strategy for the alliance that would encompass all domains across land, air, sea, space and cyber. 

Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Tod Wolters, left, Chair of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Rob Bauer, center, and Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, General Philippe Lavigne hold a press Conference after NATO's highest Military Authority, the Military Committee, met in person in the NATO headquarters in Brussels, Thursday, May 19, 2022.  (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)

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And NATO’s Military Committee Adm. Robert Bauer told reporters, "President Putin's war in Ukraine has presented us with a new strategic reality. We always have to be ready to expect the unexpected."

The NATO military chief’s sentiments were echoed by Estonian President Alar Karis who warned earlier this week that Europe must be prepared for a potential power vacuum in Russia should Putin be booted from his 22-year-long reign as president.

Russia’s flagging war in Ukraine has left an indeterminate number of dead Russian soldiers, which Moscow has reportedly attempted to cover up, and a struggling economy under strict international sanctions.

WARNING GRAPHIC IMAGE

The bodies of unidentified men, believed to be Russian soldiers, arranged in a Z, a symbol of the Russian invasion, lie near a village recently retaken by Ukrainian forces on the outskirts of Kharkiv, Ukraine, on Monday, May 2. (AP/Felipe Dana)

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Though there is currently little sign that Russian elites will attempt to oust Putin, but the Estonian president told reporters this week, "We have to be prepared." 

"Things might happen all of a sudden," Karis said in an interview with Newsweek. "There might be a new regime which is much, much more prepared to start wars. We don't know. The military power is there. I wouldn't underestimate Russia as such."