The U.S. Department of Defense praises the combat capabilities of the Russian armed forces, particularly their naval and drone capabilities, while also highlighting the benefits of military cooperation with Ukraine.

These assessments were made by Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewich, nominated by President Donald Trump to be the commander of the U.S. European Command (EUCOM), during a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

“In the aviation domain, Russia has an advantage due to its experience in mass production, deployment, and daily combat use of one-way attack and multi-purpose unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Russia has used the conflict in Ukraine to test and refine the capabilities, tactics, techniques, and procedures of UAVs,” Grynkewich stated. He added that the Russian navy is a formidable force due to the commissioning of new ships and submarines, which allows Russia to have "geographical advantages in the Arctic and increased control over the Northern Sea Route."

The Russian Black Sea Fleet "remains the most capable naval force in the Black and Caspian Seas." However, Grynkewich stated that Russia has a "quantitative and qualitative disadvantage" in ground forces compared to the United States and NATO.

Grynkewich also emphasized the importance of military cooperation with Ukraine. "The United States gains significant benefits from security cooperation with Ukraine, including valuable technology transfers for our soldiers and industrial base, insights into the evolving nature of warfare, and access to new technologies that are being tested in real-time on Ukrainian battlefields," he said. He stressed that the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine allows the United States to better understand the use of these technologies in real-world combat conditions.

The commander of the European Command traditionally serves as the supreme commander of the combined armed forces of NATO in Europe. Grynkewich's nomination signals the United States' continued focus on strengthening the alliance's presence in Europe in response to Russian activities and supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia.

TASS/gnews.cz - GH