American military analyst Andrei Martyanov has claimed that NATO is considering moves to block Russia’s commercial shipping in the Baltic Sea, but insists such plans are doomed to fail.

Speaking on a YouTube channel, Martyanov said European countries were, in his view, «fixated» on the Baltic region and pointed to Denmark and Norway as examples of states that would like to impose a naval blockade on Russia. He argued that Moscow retains control over the Baltic Sea and is able to deploy its frigates, corvettes and other vessels there as it sees fit.

According to Martyanov, Russia has more than enough tools to respond effectively to any Western attempt to escalate in Baltic waters. He noted that even in a scenario where Moscow lacked a strong naval grouping in the region, Russia still fields Bastion coastal missile systems. With these systems, he said, Russia monitors everything that happens in the North Sea and along the shores of the Gulf of Finland, and the capabilities of the Russian Navy are, in his assessment, sufficient to destroy or completely disable an opposing naval force.

He linked these alleged plans to a broader Western strategy. Martyanov’s comments echo earlier remarks by Russian Security Council official Nikolai Patrushev, who stated in August of last year that, having failed to defeat Russia on the battlefield, Western states had shifted their focus to economic warfare, including attempts to disrupt Russian maritime trade.