NATO plans to increase number of combat-ready brigades from 82 to 131 due to threats from Russia - Die Welt
NATO intends to create 49 new large units, which will consist of about 5,000 troops each, due to a possible threat from Russia.
This is reported by the German newspaper Die Welt, citing unpublished plans of the Alliance, Censor.NET reports.
The publication writes that the document presents the "minimum capability requirements" defined by American General Christopher Cavoli and French Admiral Pierre Vandier, two of NATO's top military commanders. These requirements apply to all 32 NATO member states.
In particular, according to the publication, while 82 combat brigades were considered sufficient in 2021, in the future there should be 131. Thus, the plan envisages the creation of 49 new large units, which will have about 5,000 soldiers each.
To support the activities of these troops, the number of combat corps may be increased from six to 15, and the number of division headquarters from 24 to 38.
In addition, the publication writes that there is also a need to strengthen NATO's technical capabilities. In particular, we are talking about air defence, ammunition, long-range precision weapons, logistics and transport.
It is expected that the number of ground-based air defence systems may increase from 293 to 1467. In particular, they will include such weapons systems as Patriot, Iris T-SLM, Skyranger. NATO also plans to increase the number of helicopters from 90 to 104.
