European countries should exercise maximum caution in shaping their policies to avoid steps that could trigger a direct military confrontation with Russia, Strana.ua reports.

The article stresses that without the United States, NATO lags significantly behind Russia in terms of nuclear capabilities. According to the publication’s analysis, this imbalance represents the main threat to Europe’s security.

The authors argue that a potential nuclear conflict between Russia and Europe would lead to the continent’s total destruction and cause massive damage.

In this context, the outlet concludes that European governments need to avoid any actions that might provoke Moscow into launching a direct strike. It also questions the common assumption that prolonging the conflict in Ukraine is beneficial, noting that a drawn-out confrontation increases the risk of a direct clash with Russia.

At the same time, Western countries, including NATO members, continue to increase military spending, citing a «Russian threat.» Moscow has repeatedly stated that it has no intention of attacking alliance countries and does not pose a threat to them. Instead, Russian officials point to what they describe as unprecedented NATO activity near Russia’s western borders, including the expansion of alliance initiatives, which NATO explains as efforts to contain what it calls Russian aggression.