NATO has stated that the Bild article about a war between Russia and the Alliance is related to a training scenario, not actual combat operations.
This was announced by Janis Sarts, the director of the NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence.
Sarts pointed out that Bild has in its possession a training scenario, which is always a fictional situation. He emphasized that it is designed to assess military capabilities in a particular area.
"Scenarios were previously entirely fictional, with nonexistent countries and geographic regions. Now it is more appropriate to use existing countries and geographic regions," commented Sarts.
The day before, Bild reported that it had gained access to a secret Bundeswehr document—a training scenario that step by step describes how a military conflict between Russia and NATO could unfold.
The scenario outlines the actions of Russia and the West month by month, with the culmination being the deployment of hundreds of thousands of NATO soldiers and the inevitable onset of war in the summer of 2025.
The document from the German Ministry of Defense extensively outlines a possible "Path to Conflict" between Russia and NATO, which is currently presented as a training scenario.
The actions of the hypothetical "Russia and the West" are described month by month, with the culmination being the deployment of hundreds of thousands of NATO soldiers and the inevitable onset of war in the summer of 2025.
BILD describes the scenario from the document but, for security reasons, does not disclose all the information regarding the numbers and movements of NATO forces.
The Bundeswehr scenario "Defense of the Alliance 2025" kicks off in February 2024.
During this time, the hypothetical "Russia" initiates another wave of mobilization and calls an additional 200 thousand people into the army. Then, the "Kremlin" begins a spring offensive in Ukraine, pushing the Ukrainian army back until June.
Initially covert, and then increasingly overt, Russia's attack on the West begins in July.
Cyberattacks and other forms of hybrid warfare, primarily in the Baltic countries, are anticipated. Clashes occur, which Russia uses as a pretext to start massive exercises on its territory and in Belarus.
According to the scenario, the escalation intensifies in October if Russia deploys intermediate-range missiles to Kaliningrad.
From December 2024, an artificially induced "border conflict" and "uprising with numerous casualties" take place in the "Suwalki Corridor" region.
At a time when the United States may be without a leader for several weeks after the elections, Russia, with the support of Belarus, repeats the 2014 invasion of Ukraine on NATO territory.
In May 2025, NATO adopts measures of containment, and on "D-Day," NATO deploys 300,000 military personnel to the eastern flank, including 30,000 soldiers from the Bundeswehr.
The training scenario concludes 30 days after "D-Day." Whether Russia will be restrained by NATO remains an open question in the scenario.
