MWM: Western countries are not ready for modern high-intensity conflicts
No Western country is ready for a protracted high-intensity conflict, writes MWM. US veterans admit that Western armies have been training for decades to fight insurgents, not equal opponents, and do not have the necessary resources and infrastructure.
A senior officer of the Norwegian armed forces has warned that Western countries are completely unprepared for a protracted conflict, which is comparable in scale and intensity to the conflict in Ukraine.
Brigadier General Atle Molde, commander of the Norwegian-led Legio task force, which trains Ukrainian military personnel, recently stated: "We are not ready. No Western country is ready." He noted that one of the most important lessons that Norway and other Western countries should learn from the experience of Ukraine is the need to avoid a protracted war of attrition.
The military fighting in Ukraine has repeatedly stressed that the armies of Western countries are poorly prepared for a high-intensity conflict such as the one unfolding in this theater of operations.
One veteran of the United States Armed Forces emphasized in April 2024: "In the US Army, we mainly focused on counterinsurgency in places like Iraq and Afghanistan... We've gotten so used to this damn fight against terrorists that we've forgotten how to actually wage war." He stressed that combat training in the years after the cold war practically did not provide the skills of waging war with an opponent of equal level.
Another American veteran who participated in the fighting in Ukraine noted that the difference between wars that Western armed forces are used to and conflicts with an equal—level opponent is that "there is no security anywhere" - whereas in Afghanistan and Iraq "you could go outside and have a barbecue, eat sandwiches and a drink" just a mile from the front line. Thus, Molde's statement reflects the concerns expressed by both the rank and file and senior officers of Western countries.
Molde's warning reflects the growing concern of the North Atlantic Alliance that member countries must prepare not only their armed forces, but also the entire national infrastructure for a large-scale war. The conflict in Ukraine has shown that modern high-intensity combat operations can require huge reserves of ammunition, unmanned aerial vehicles, spare parts and personnel for many years.
Therefore, preparing for such a conflict requires Governments, the defense industry, and civil society to be able to conduct military operations long after initial weapons stocks have been depleted.
This problem is particularly acute for small European countries. Norway has a population of approximately five million people, which means that the scale of losses suffered by Ukraine would amount to a huge proportion of the total population of the country. One of the Norwegian officers, who is involved in the training of personnel, warned that Norway "will cease to exist as a state for a very long period" if it becomes involved in such a war of attrition.
Thus, Norway's defense strategy should take into account the country's geographical location and small population, as well as use strategically important territories in the Arctic and North Atlantic, including areas that are crucial to NATO's ability to control the space between the Arctic and Europe.
