In an interview with Kommersant newspaper on Wednesday, the senior official reiterated that NATO remains a significant security threat to Russia and should not be underestimated.

Shoigu noted that, according to official data, the combined armed forces of NATO member states exceed four million personnel. Additionally, the alliance possesses over 50,000 tanks and armored combat vehicles, more than 7,000 aircraft, and over 750 warships.

In this regard, he emphasized that the “substantial increase in the planned defense budget will only further enhance this military potential.”

Furthermore, Shoigu warned that NATO countries operate a fleet of approximately 350 military and civilian satellites, which are already being actively deployed against Russia in the Ukrainian conflict. “And this does not even account for the thousands of Starlink systems in use,” he added.

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