U.S. Preparing for Russia to Bring War to NATO Countries

The U.S. State Department announced Thursday that it wants the U.S. lawmakers to approve funds for countries that neighbor Ukraine and "are potentially at risk of future Russian aggression."

The funds would be part of a new $2 billion-plus aid package to Ukraine and its allies that has been proposed by U.S. officials.

In a statement on Thursday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the funds would be provided to 18 nations that neighbor Ukraine.

The $2.2 billion package, which would need to be approved by Congress, would provide roughly $1 billion to Ukraine, and the rest would be split among countries including the Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Latvia and Lithuania, the Associated Press reported, while Slovakia, Poland, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, Moldova and Slovenia would also receive funds.

In recent weeks, NATO has taken steps to protect member states amid concerns that the war could extend beyond Ukraine's borders. Last month, NATO planes and fighter jets began a surveillance effort, and the organization said it was providing a "constant defensive presence and monitoring the airspace" over Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania.

Also in August, a Kremlin propagandist Vladimir Solovyov declared that Russia is at war with NATO countries. "It's a war against NATO, a war for our country's survival," Solovyov said on Russian state television.

The 101st Airborne Division, known as Screaming Eagles, were sent to NATO member states last month to help protect the alliance's eastern flank. In a statement on Twitter on August 11, the U.S. Mission to NATO said that roughly 2,400 soldiers were being sent to Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary and Slovakia "to reassure our Allies, and deter our adversaries."

In an op-ed published in the Financial Times on Wednesday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg acknowledged the risk Russia poses to NATO member states.

"The price we pay in supporting Ukraine also benefits our own security. [Russian President] Vladimir Putin has clearly stated that he wants to wipe the country from the map and rewrite the European security order," Stoltenberg wrote.

"Russia is temporarily occupying about 20 per cent of Ukraine — four times the size of Belgium, or half of the UK. Emboldened by any success, Russia could risk further aggression against other neighbours, and even an attack on Nato allies."

In addition to his statement of a new aid proposal on Thursday, Blinken announced an additional $675 million drawdown that will include additional "additional arms, munitions, and equipment from U.S. Department of Defense inventories" for Ukraine.

Newsweek reached out to the State Department for comment.