Ahead of US president Joe Biden’s scheduled meetings with world leaders in Europe, the White House has quietly assembled a team of national security officials to sketch out scenarios of how the United States and its allies should respond if Russian President Vladimir Putin unleashes his stockpiles of chemical, biological or nuclear weapons.
The group, known as the Tiger Team, is also examining responses if Putin reaches into Nato territory to attack convoys bringing weapons and aid to Ukraine, according to several officials involved in the process, according to a recent New York Times report.
The team is also looking at responses if Russia seeks to extend the war to neighbouring nations, including Moldova and Georgia, and how to prepare European countries for the refugees flowing in on a scale not seen in decades, the Times reports.
These plans are expected to be discussed in Brussels on Thursday, when US President Biden meets leaders of the 29 other Nato nations.
As Biden flew to Europe on Wednesday, both he and Stoltenberg warned of growing evidence that Russia was in fact preparing to use chemical weapons in Ukraine.
One major issue the Tiger Team is reportedly looking at is the threshold that could prompt the alliance to use military force in Ukraine. Biden has made clear that he is reluctant to to do so, fearing that direct confrontation with Russia could escalate the conflict beyond control. “That’s World War Three,” he said recently.
