Finland shares a long land border with Russia (symbolic image).Image: Universal Images Group Editorial
According to a report by the Danish broadcaster DR, new satellite images indicate an extensive expansion of Russian military facilities along the NATO border. Secret service representatives and military experts warn of an increasing threat in the Baltic Sea region.
June 10, 2026, 10:12 p.mJune 10, 2026, 10:37 p.m
New bases are to be built and existing military bases are to be expanded from northern Norway to the Lithuanian border. This is what they report Danish broadcaster DR and several military and intelligence officials he interviewed from Sweden, Norway, Finland and Denmark.
The satellite images show increased activity in regions that would be among the first conflict zones in the event of a military escalation between Russia and NATO.
Space for tens of thousands of additional soldiers
Former Finnish intelligence officer Marko Eklund assumes that Russia is already making preparations to move large contingents of troops to the NATO border after the end of the Ukraine war.
According to him, around 115,000 soldiers could be stationed there in the future, the vast majority of them combat soldiers.
“Russia is creating space for tens of thousands of additional soldiers,” Eklund told DR.
“The next few years are the most dangerous”
Several military and intelligence sources cited by DR see the coming years as particularly critical. The next one to three years are the “absolutely most dangerous” when it comes to the risk of a military confrontation between Russia and NATO.
The head of Swedish military intelligence, Thomas Nilsson, described the development as a serious threat.
“It is certainly a threat that we should take seriously,” he said.
Baltic Sea increasingly in focus
Incidents in the Baltic Sea region are already increasing. NATO countries regularly report GPS interference, aggressive flight maneuvers by Russian fighter jets and suspicious activities near critical infrastructure such as wind farms, LNG terminals or military installations.
The neighboring countries are also increasingly observing cyber attacks and drone activities. Russian military exercises in Kaliningrad recently simulated, among other things, the blockade of the Baltic Sea and attacks on NATO territory.
NATO sees its own weaknesses
According to DR, NATO officers also point to significant deficits in the European armed forces. There is a lack of personnel, drones, air forces and space technology capabilities.
A NATO officer quoted by DR said that Europe currently does not have enough conventional forces on land, at sea and in the air to cover all challenges.
Russia denies allegations
Moscow denies the allegations. The Russian ambassador to Denmark, Vladimir Barbin, described speculation about a possible attack on NATO states to DR as a “lie”.
Several of the experts interviewed also emphasize that there is currently no evidence of an imminent Russian attack. However, the military preparations for a possible later confrontation are already clearly visible. (mke)