US warns of potential Russian attack on NATO ally this fall

U.S. intelligence believes Russia could attack a NATO ally as early as this fall, which could include a possible land invasion, according to the new reports. It comes as the war in Ukraine shows no signs of stopping, after raging on for four years so far.

President Donald Trump was asked on Thursday night about repeated pleas from Ukraine for air defense supplies.

“We want missiles too,” he said. He added that seconds after telling reporters, “we have literally massive amounts of ammunition.”

“Look, we’re not involved. We’re separated by an ocean,” Trump said.

Meanwhile, the U.S. faces a shortage of critical munitions, which it would crucially need to respond to such an attack from Russia or China, U.S. officials told the Wall Street Journal.

The terrifying intelligence assessment predicts an attack could happen between this fall and 2029. Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s goal is thought to be to force the U.S.’s hand and fracture the 77-year-old alliance, built up of 32 countries, many of which are in Europe.

Heather Conley, a senior fellow with the American Enterprise Institute, told the Journal about the impending possibility of a Russian attack.

“The question mark is how the United States would respond in that case,” she said. “It has always been a goal [of Russia’s] to challenge the credibility of NATO and to separate the United States from its allies.”

Russia has already appeared to be testing NATO, as Russian missiles have landed in Poland and drones have been flying over Romania, which are both NATO member states.

However, Ukraine’s attacks have put increasing pressure on Putin, repeatedly targeting oil refineries and putting major strain on Russia’s oil supply.

On Friday, Ukrainian long-range drones hit a warehouse of Russia’s biggest online retailer in the Ural Mountains, more than 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) from the two countries’ border, local officials reported. Kyiv’s aim is to upset the Russian public and the Kremlin with the attacks.

Meanwhile, Zelensky announced on Thursday that a joint European anti-ballistic development program is already underway, with 10 countries working to develop an anti-ballistic shield. Europe has already grown concerned about Russia’s ambitions on the continent beyond Ukraine.

Should an attack on a NATO member state arise, the U.S. is currently less equipped to deal with it. It was recently reported that the U.S. military has severely depleted its stockpile of munitions by already arming Ukrainian troops, as well as its costly ongoing conflict with Iran.

Trump raged about the leak of such information this week, saying U.S. has “massive amounts” of the expensive weapons and said that “large amounts are being manufactured and shipped to the U.S. as needed”. He also lashed out at “leakers” for telling the press about the depleted stockpiles.