NATO Is Preparing A Strategy For Strikes Deep Inside Russia In The Event Of An Attack By Putin

• 4.11.2026, 14:30

A crucial lesson has been learned from Ukraine's experience.

The war in Ukraine and Russia’s escalating aggression have forced NATO leaders to NATO to change their approach to defending their territories. For decades, Europe’s defense was based on preventing the advance of Soviet or Russian troops should they cross the alliance’s borders. But now, NATO strategists believe that this is not enough. Under the leadership of the Supreme Commander of NATO Forces in Europe Alexus Grinkevich, proactive measures have been developed in case of an invasion—strikes against military bases, warehouses, supply lines, and industrial facilities far behind enemy lines, on Russian territory itself, writes The Wall Street Journal.

NATO has drawn a crucial lesson from the experience in Ukraine: “defense also involves striking back,” and precision strikes deep into enemy territory are a crucial part of it, Major General Irenaeusz Nowak of the Polish Army told the newspaper: “In the event of a conflict with Russia, we would certainly want to strike at its military-industrial base. Precision strikes deep into its territory should be viewed as a means of deterrence.” “If Ukraine had had this capability at the start of the war, it would not have turned into ‘positional warfare, as in World War I,’” Novak added.

Strikes “deep inside” involve attacks with high-precision missiles and less expensive weapons, such as drones, at distances ranging from approximately 150 to thousands of kilometers behind the front lines. The targets would include not only traditional military facilities, such as airfields or army bases, but also industrial plants, critical infrastructure, and Russia’s raw material resources. The plan calls for strikes to be launched automatically in the event of a Russian attack, the WSJ reports.

In June, NATO held the alliance’s first-ever symposium on deep strikes. And at a recent security conference in Warsaw, Grinkevich outlined this approach in detail in a speech dedicated to his “theory of victory.” It posits that NATO’s defensive forces will first halt the initial wave of the attack, then disrupt the attackers’ subsequent operations. If the attackers attempt to continue their advance, “we will destroy the enemy’s system of warfare” by striking both the advancing forces and “everyone and everything that supports, supplies, or controls these forces,” Grinkevich stated.

The strategy does not call for escalation to the use of nuclear weapons.

High-precision long-range weapons—ranging from proven Tomahawk and ATACMS missiles to new systems—play a central role in Grinkevich’s plan. European countries are rushing to replenish their stockpiles of Storm Shadow, Scalp, and Taurus cruise missiles, as well as to develop and deploy new models. Currently, 20 manufacturers in Europe are carrying out at least 48 projects to develop low-cost cruise missiles, although not all of them will be successful, says Fabian Hoffman, a senior research fellow at the Norwegian Institute for Defense Studies.

Ukraine has adopted a similar approach in recent years—one often described as “shooting at the archer instead of defending against the arrows.” Using increasingly powerful weapons, including its own “Flamingo” cruise missiles, Kyiv is striking Russian military and economic targets.

However, experts say, the question remains whether European politicians will be able to bring themselves to implement NATO’s new doctrine. “There is a gap between military planning—which makes sense from the perspective of defense against Russia and undoubtedly includes offensive components—and the position of politicians who believe that defense boils down merely to building a wall or preparing a ‘drone barrier,’ — says Nico Lange, former chief of staff at the German Ministry of Defense.

Nevertheless, NATO commanders insist on the need to rapidly expand the arsenal of capabilities for striking targets deep inside Russia. Novak explained to the WSJ: “The message [to Moscow] should be this: don’t do anything stupid, because we can punish you. But for that to sound convincing, we need to have those capabilities.”