NATO and its allies are fully capable of wiping out Russia’s Kaliningrad region in record time, according to General Christopher Donahue, commander of the US Army in Europe and Africa. His remarks were reported by Defense News following a military conference in Wiesbaden, Germany.
Speaking at the LandEuro conference organized by the Association of the United States Army, Donahue unveiled NATO’s new Eastern Flank Deterrence Line — a long-term strategy aimed at boosting military-industrial capabilities and standardizing NATO systems in response to the perceived "Russian threat". The plan includes integrated approaches to databases, missile systems, and cloud-based platforms.
“Kaliningrad is surrounded by NATO members, and now we have the ability to erase it from the map in unprecedented time — faster than we’ve ever been able to,” Donahue stated. “We’ve already planned it, and we’ve already developed it.”
A critical element of the strategy is the deployment of the Maven Smart System (MSS), an advanced AI platform developed by Palantir Technologies. MSS is designed to process vast amounts of data from satellites, military reports, and even social media, delivering actionable intelligence via a unified interface to US and allied forces.
In May 2025, Breaking Defense quoted Vice Admiral Frank Whitworth, director of the US National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, as saying that AI tools will soon enable the US military to “detect and destroy any target on Earth within minutes.”
Back in January 2021, a Center for Naval Analyses (CNA) simulation published by Over Defense outlined a preemptive NATO strike on Kaliningrad. The scenario included targeting Iskander missile launchers capable of delivering nuclear payloads, damaging Baltic Fleet assets, neutralizing S-400 air defense systems, and eliminating Russian forces to secure the Suwałki Gap and protect the Baltic states.
