NATO's Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) Alexus Grynkewich spoke at the "Warsaw Security Forum 2026".
Underlining that NATO is a defense-oriented alliance created to preserve peace, Grynkewich said, "Therefore, we do not have any plans, intentions or goals beyond protecting our people and defending our lands. However, our defense-oriented structure should not be perceived as weakness or lack of determination." he said.
Grynkewich stated that NATO aims to deter attacks and maintain peace thanks to its joint power, adding, "However, if anyone acts foolish enough to attack us, we will fight. We will stop the attack and prevent the other side from achieving its goals. In short, we will ensure that any attack against any ally is completely fruitless." he said.
Stating that 32 allies accepted the "victory theory" to achieve this, Grynkewich stated that they do not foresee a conflict in the near future.
Grynkewich said, "However, deterring conflicts also requires being ready for war. Being prepared requires planning not only for the probable, but also for possible scenarios." made his assessment.
THE ALLIANCE TRUSTS ITS INTELLIGENCE
Noting that one of NATO's main powers is superiority in decision-making, Grynkewich emphasized that the alliance perceives and observes the situation around it with advanced and layered intelligence systems, thanks to the large amount of data provided by multi-source intelligence collection elements.
Grynkewich stated that these data were transformed into meaningful results using advanced algorithms and critical evaluations were made, resulting in an in-depth understanding of the strategic and operational environment.
"This means the alliance is less likely to be caught off guard." Grynkewich said that their main goal is to deter attacks.
Grynkewich stated that they developed the "victory theory" to help fulfill this task and said, "Our victory theory offers a common vision of how we can achieve success in the fields of deterrence and defense." he said.
HOW WILL THE THEORY WORK?
Stating that the attack was first prevented within the scope of the "victory theory", Grynkewich stated that if the attack continued, its effect was broken and the enemy's advance was prevented.
Grynkewich explained that at the next point, if necessary, they will neutralize the enemy forces and the operational combat system deployed against the alliance.
Stating that they did not aim to inflict a strategic defeat on the opponent, Grynkewich said:
"Our goal is simply to stop any attack and prevent the other side from seizing and holding our territory. Achieving this requires the defeat of the forces used against us at the tactical and operational level, but nothing more. We neutralize the combat system that is attacking us so that it is unable to continue its attack."
Grynkewich underlined that they had no intention of escalating the tension, and emphasized that in case the tension escalated, the responsibility would rest entirely with the aggressor and that only they would bear the entire moral, political and strategic burden.
'WE ARE NOT COMPLAINED'
Stating that they are taking steps to operationalize the "theory of victory" throughout the alliance and to maximize the preparedness level of the forces, Grynkewich said, "We are ready to fight tonight in case of an attack. However, we do not become complacent. We will continue to prepare and continue our exercises every day. We will be more ready tomorrow than today, and the day after tomorrow." gave his message.
Grynkewich said, "The theory of victory I have described today may require me to give orders that I hope I will never have to give. Our alliance exists to preserve the peace. But let us leave no doubt, in the event of war, we will prevent the attack, break its influence, and if the attack does not end, we will neutralize the forces carrying out the aggression." he said.
