US Secretary of Defense James Mattis is seeking to ignite a military “showdown” with Russia, American analyst Wayne Madsen says, citing the Pentagon chief’s latest remarks against Moscow.
Mattis said on Wednesday that the US and NATO were prepared to deploy military equipment to the Baltic region to deter Russia.
Two US military officials had said earlier in the day that the Pentagon was considering deploying a Patriot missile battery to the Baltic region before this summer.
Wary of the US-led NATO alliance’s military buildup near its borders, Russia is preparing for massive military exercises in its western military region in September.
The Pentagon chief criticized Russia for moving its troops nearer to its Western areas.
“Any buildup of Russian combat power in an area where they know, and we all know, they are not threatened by anything that we are doing … is simply destabilizing,” he said.
Madsen, a Washington-based author and investigative…