Vladimir Putin may use chemical weapons on German cities if war breaks out with NATO. The warning comes from German lawmakers as the government ramps up contingency planning for a global conflict.
The German Bundestag has released a 14-page briefing document to MPs, outlining a worst-case scenario in which Russia wages war against Berlin in four stages, culminating in a ground invasion as part of a wider conflict with NATO - n.
During the first phase, Russia would organize disinformation campaigns on social media and national media to undermine confidence in German democracy and destabilize society.
This would be followed by a second phase in which Moscow would deploy soldiers on the eastern flank of NATO states. It would also increase cyber-attacks, espionage and acts of sabotage to try to impede the troop movement of NATO members, including Germany.
In the third phase, Russia would launch a conventional military attack on NATO's eastern flank and strike targets such as Germany, deeper inside the western alliance.
In the fourth and final phase, Russian troops would break through NATO's defense lines and invade Germany, leading to a full-scale "land, sea and air" war between Russian and German forces.
The briefing paper could not rule out the risk of Moscow launching chemical attacks on Germany and increasing threats to use nuclear weapons. Armed confrontation in space is also possible.
A wide-scale war would grip Europe and end in a cease-fire a few months later, the report predicts, which also suggests that there will be repetitions of Russian nerve gas poisonings.
The report underlines that experience has shown that a potential aggressor may be prepared to use non-conventional weapons as well.