Russia could attack a NATO country within months, Danish intelligence warns

Russia could launch a limited military attack in the coming months against a NATO country that Moscow borders, Danish intelligence has warned.

In a new threat assessment, Denmark's defence intelligence service said there is "a low but growing risk" that Moscow may carry out isolated long-range strikes using missiles or drones on NATO infrastructure supporting Ukraine.

Russia could also deploy a limited number of soldiers into a NATO border area, possibly under the pretext ​of protecting Russian minorities, service chief Thomas Ahrenkiel warned.

"The aim is not to take over the country, but to divide NATO," he said.

NATO members that border Russia include Finland, Norway, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.

And the report said Moscow is likely to ramp up its hybrid war against the West in the coming months.

It comes as a top Polish official said a blaze at a Starlink station that engulfed its power system and backup generator on Wednesday evening ​was an act of sabotage aimed at disrupting internet services, including ‌for Ukraine's military.

Poland's deputy prime minister Krzysztof Gawkowski said that "many signs suggest this aligns with Russia's new doctrine of attack".

His country has been on heightened alert for acts of sabotage since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in 2022.

NATO's top commander has said the US would continue ​to provide "critical but more limited capabilities" ​to the alliance, as Europeans take up ​a greater role in defending the ​continent.

US Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich - the Supreme Allied Commander Europe - said ⁠a string of recent incidents, including an attempted drone strike at Germany's Leipzig/Halle Airport and a Russian ship firing flares in the direction of a Danish ​military helicopter, was "concerning".

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The Danish defence intelligence service claimed Russia would engage in more frequent attacks against ​the West and NATO "with greater consequences for the countries targeted than in the past".

"A limited military attack would be a desperate move on Russia's part and, like the intensified hybrid attacks, could potentially take place in the coming months," it said.

The Danish Resilience Agency has said Russia would likely try to carry out cyberattacks against Denmark, with the agency also raising its threat level.

General Grynkewich said NATO is stepping up intelligence-sharing in response to a wave of sabotage and other incidents apparently linked to ‌Russia.

However, the alliance should be "calm and confident" that it can handle any threat posed by Moscow, he added.

Moscow has repeatedly denied any involvement in hybrid ⁠warfare, sabotage operations in countries of the alliance, or plotting any confrontation.

The Russian embassy in Denmark on Thursday rejected ​the assessment that there is a heightened risk that Moscow might launch a limited military ​attack against one or several NATO countries that border Russia.

It said this was unsupported by credible evidence and accused the West, led by Denmark, of driving up ​tensions over Ukraine.

"Our persistent warnings about the destructiveness of such an approach are being ignored," the embassy said.

(c) Sky News 2026: Russia could attack a NATO country within months, Danish intelligence warns