US defense officials raised the security alert level at military bases in Europe over the weekend in response to vague threats from the Kremlin about Ukraine using long-range weapons on Russian territory, according to US and Western officials.
Officials said no specific intelligence had been gathered about possible Russian attacks on US bases. Any such attack by Russia, whether overt or covert, would be a significant escalation of the country’s war in Ukraine.
Russia has stepped up sabotage in Europe, hoping to disrupt the flow of materials to Ukraine. So far, no U.S. bases have been targeted in those attacks, but U.S. officials said raising the alert level would help ensure that military personnel are on the lookout.
Throughout the war, U.S. officials have assessed that President Vladimir V. Putin has no desire to expand the war beyond Ukraine’s borders.
But the increased U.S. and European aid — and the loosening of restrictions on how that material can be used — has caused consternation in Moscow, according to U.S. officials. Recent Russian statements have alarmed some U.S. and European officials.
Ukraine has been using a long-range American missile called ATACMS to strike deep into occupied Crimea. The United States also said Ukraine could use them in cross-border attacks on Russian military targets.
The attacks on Crimea prompted Russia to summon Lynne M. Tracy, the U.S. ambassador, to the State Department. And on June 24, a Kremlin spokesman said any direct U.S. involvement in a war that resulted in Russian deaths “must have consequences.”
The US decision to supply long-range weapons and ease restrictions on their use follows Britain’s decision to supply Storm Shadow cruise missiles to Ukraine. Kyiv has used these weapons to attack military targets in Crimea.
Western weapons strikes, especially in Crimea, have proven effective, damaging Russian Army logistics centers and further weakening Russia’s Black Sea Fleet.
But the success of the attacks prompted Moscow to seek ways to prevent further attacks.
In recent months, Russia has intensify a series of destructive attacks in various parts of Europe. The Russian military intelligence operation has sometimes appeared clumsy, including a fire at an Ikea store. But NATO has repeatedly warned about the incidents, and Britain expelled the Russian defense attaché after a fire at a warehouse in London.
Military bases that provide training, intelligence and other support to Ukraine would be logical next targets, even if there is no specific intelligence to suggest that Russia is considering such an attack.
Protecting military bases and the people who live and work there falls under what the Pentagon often calls force protection. Beyond things like simple fencing or guards guarding base gates, that includes an increasingly limited set of security measures that can be implemented in proportion to a given threat.
Most U.S. military installations around the world are at the second-lowest level of security, known as “alpha” force protection conditions, which include measures such as directing officials to check their communications equipment and increasing random checks of vehicles and people entering and leaving the base.
At the opposite end of the spectrum is the “delta” condition, which is set when an attack is imminent or in progress. This level closes non-essential functions like base schools, directs searches of all vehicles at entry points, adds more guards, and severely restricts the movement of most people on a given base.
As of now, US military bases in Europe are at “Charlie” status, the second-highest and highest level of readiness that can reasonably be maintained over an extended period of time.
Over the weekend, Commander Daniel Day, a spokesman for US European Command, said the military had asked personnel to “remain vigilant and alert at all times.”
In a statement Monday, European Command said officials would not describe the measures they are taking to ensure operational security.
“Our increased alertness is not related to any single threat but rather stems from an abundance of caution due to a combination of factors that could potentially impact the safety and security of U.S. service members in the European theater,” the command said in a statement.
Eric Schmitt Contribute report.
