NATO commander outlines “block, blunt and break” plan for an attack, saying the alliance is ready to fight tonight but sees no conflict as imminent

NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, outlined a defensive plan for responding to an attack at the Warsaw Security Forum on October 12, saying the alliance would block an initial assault, blunt any continued advance and, if necessary, break the attacking forces and the system sustaining them. “If someone is foolish enough to attack us, we will fight,” he said.

Grynkewich said NATO’s objective would not be the strategic defeat of an adversary. It would be to stop the attack and deny the enemy the ability to seize and hold NATO territory, requiring the tactical and operational defeat of the forces involved—but “no more.” He said NATO would target the attacking force’s warfighting system only to make it unable to continue the assault.

He said NATO aims to detect potential attacks early, assess the threat and rapidly position forces. That, he argued, would strengthen deterrence and prevent an adversary from capturing territory before the alliance could respond. “We know how we will fight if a fight comes to us. And we know we will win,” he said, adding that potential adversaries should conclude: “Today is not the day.”

Grynkewich said NATO was “ready to fight tonight” if attacked and would keep preparing and rehearsing each day. He stressed that he did not consider military conflict imminent or inevitable, describing the approach as defensive and intended to convince potential adversaries that an attack could not achieve its objectives.

Grynkewich is a U.S. Air Force general who also commands U.S. European Command.