Sweden, as the newest member of NATO, has also been tipped for a potential invasion, with Swedish Gen. Micael Bydén telling the public they should prepare for war.
Retired US Gen. Mark Hertling, who once served as Commanding General of United States Army Europe, suggested the enclave of Kaliningrad could instead be Putin’s next objective.
Kaliningrad, which stands between Lithuania and Poland, is still part of Russia but was split from the mainland after the USSR collapsed in 1991 and Lithuania became an independent Republic.
He said: “With Sweden joining NATO many are posting a map showing a ‘NATO Lake’ as the Baltic Sea. But there’s danger here. Most haven’t heard of Kaliningrad or the Suwalkie ‘Gap.’
“Those of us who have served in Europe believe if Ukraine falls, this will be the next Russia expansion.”
Warnings of an expansion of the conflict zone come as Putin on Thursday said that deploying Western troops to Ukraine could result in a global nuclear war.
In an apparent reference to French President Emmanuel Macron’s statement earlier this week that the future deployment of Western ground troops to Ukraine should not be “ruled out”, Putin warned that it would lead to “tragic” consequences for the countries who decide to do that.
Putin noted that while accusing Russia of plans to attack NATO allies in Europe, Western allies were “selecting targets for striking our territory” and “talking about the possibility of sending a NATO contingent to Ukraine.”
