The Russian sabotage campaign in EU countries has failed to achieve its goal of forcing them to abandon aid to Ukraine, said Alexus Grynkewich — NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe and a lieutenant general in the U.S. Air Force — during a speech at the European Parliament on Monday, September 28. DW reports, writes UNN.
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At the same time, he said, the acts of sabotage are becoming increasingly "brazen." In particular, Grynkewich recalled the discovery of an explosives-laden drone at Leipzig Airport in early August and the launch of signal flares by a Russian frigate at a Danish helicopter in mid-September.
These are clear examples of attempts to sow fear and undermine our united support for Ukraine. It is not working. If your country is subjected to a hybrid attack, strengthening your resolve to support Ukraine will show the Russians that their strategy is not working and may persuade them to abandon it
In the view of NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe, the best possible response to sabotage and other destabilizing actions carried out by Russia is to directly accuse Moscow of them and increase support for Kyiv.
Making this information public will make sponsor states understand that we know about their actions and will raise the cost of such operations for them
According to him, after direct accusations, such states will "understand that their networks are ineffective and that they need to change their behavior," and this "in itself has a certain deterrent effect."
Grynkewich also noted that Operation "Eastern Sentry," which has been carried out since September 2025 with the participation of Denmark, France, the United Kingdom, and Germany, has already had a positive impact on the security of the Alliance's eastern borders. "Since we launched Operation \"Eastern Sentry,\" the Russian side has become much more cautious about drones crossing the borders of the Baltic countries and Poland," he said.