NATO is weighing a more aggressive strategy for countering Russia’s hybrid warfare, from cyber attacks and suspected sabotage to repeated airspace violations across Europe. Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, who chairs the alliance’s military committee, said NATO is now actively exploring ways to respond proactively to such operations rather than limiting itself to defensive or after‑the‑fact measures.
Dragone indicated that allies are studying whether some pre-emptive actions in cyberspace or against networks suspected of planning sabotage could be treated as legitimate self-defence under international law. But he stressed that any move toward a more assertive posture must navigate sensitive legal and jurisdictional questions, including who would authorize and carry out such operations on behalf of the alliance.
The debate comes after a string of incidents attributed to Russia, including cyberattacks on European targets, damage to undersea energy and data cables in the Baltic Sea, and incursions by Russian aircraft that have repeatedly tested NATO airspace. Eastern flank members in particular are pressing for NATO to move from what they see as merely “absorbing” hybrid blows to a posture that deters and disrupts hostile activity before it hits critical infrastructure or undermines public confidence.
