FT: NATO considers more aggressive response to Russia
1 December 2025 13:18
NATO is considering a “more aggressive” response to cyberattacks, sabotage and airspace violations by Russia. This was reported by "Komersant Ukrainian" with reference to the Financial Times.
Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, Chairman of NATO’s Military Committee, said that the Alliance is considering strengthening its response to Moscow’s hybrid warfare. “We are studying everything… In cyberspace, we are responding to events. We are thinking about being more aggressive or proactive, not reactive,” he said.
Europe has experienced numerous hybrid military incidents – some attributed to Russia and others unexplained – from cable cuts in the Baltic Sea to cyber attacks across the continent. Some diplomats, especially those from Eastern European countries, have called for NATO to launch retaliatory strikes. Such a response would be easiest in the case of cyberattacks, where many countries have offensive capabilities, but would be less straightforward in the case of sabotage or drone incursions.
Dragonet said a “preemptive strike” could be considered a “defensive action,” but added: “This is far from our usual way of thinking and behaving.”
Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen added that more decisive action “is something we are considering. At the moment, I don’t think it is necessary. We also need to take a step back and carefully analyze what the aggressor is seeking. Then we probably should not be hysterical. We have our own plan of action and we should trust it because it is quite reliable.”
Dragonet acknowledged that one of the problems is that NATO and its members have “many more constraints than our partners, because of ethics, because of legislation, because of jurisdiction. This is a problem. I don’t want to say that this is a losing position, but it is a more difficult position than our partners’. The Chairman of the NATO Military Committee noted that the most important test is to prevent future aggression.
