One of the worst-case scenarios that the German armed forces are preparing for "in just two to three years" involves a Russian attack on NATO, where German armed forces are at the center of events from the first hours, The Times reports, writes UNN.
"Russia launches a full-scale aggressive war against NATO, and German armed forces are at the center of events from the first hours. A 4,800-strong mechanized infantry brigade strikes from a forward base in Lithuania, before another 15,000 rapid reaction troops are deployed to the front within days.
Over the following weeks, tens of thousands of allied soldiers arrive at German North Sea ports to be transported east by road and rail routes affected by Russian sabotage, cyberattacks, and possibly long-range missile strikes.
Soon, hundreds of casualties are transported back daily for treatment, overwhelming German hospitals on a scale comparable to the darkest days of the coronavirus pandemic.
This is the worst-case scenario that Lieutenant General Gerald Funke, head of the German Armed Forces Support Command (UstgKdoBw), is preparing his country for in just two to three years," the publication writes.
He told The Times: "While in Afghanistan I had, unfortunately, a large but manageable number of wounded, now I have to plan for the possibility of a thousand wounded a day. The closer you look at it, the more complex it becomes and the harder it is to imagine."
"What worries me now... is the hybrid side, the covert side: sabotage, sleeper cells, some targeted attacks. I cannot rule out the use of long-range missiles. But I think the hybrid threat is very high," Funke said.
"It is important for us to maintain Germany as a logistics hub and manage supply lines as long and smoothly as possible, meaning if one route fails, we will have the opportunity to use others," he noted.