Russia has singled out four NATO member states for retaliation in the event of a war with the West, in its latest attempt to stoke fear and division across the alliance’s eastern front. Sergey Naryshkin, director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), said Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania would be targeted first if hostilities broke out between the Kremlin and the West.

He said: “They should understand, but do not yet understand, that in the event of aggression by the North Atlantic Alliance against Russia and Belarus, damage will be done, of course, to the entire NATO bloc. But to a greater extent, the first to suffer will be the bearers of such ideas among the political circles of Poland and the Baltic countries.” The remarks, published by Russian state outlet TASS, came amid renewed sabre-rattling by Russian officials and military figures, as the war in Ukraine drags on and US support for Kyiv wavers.

President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly claimed that NATO poses an existential threat to Russia.

In March, 2024, he ordered nationwide nuclear readiness drills and warned the West not to “drag” the world into conflict, accusing it of trying to break Russia apart.

Naryshkin accused Poland and the Baltics of “high aggressiveness,” and specifically criticised Warsaw for requesting the deployment of US nuclear weapons on its territory, as well as for its plans to place anti-personnel mines along its borders with Belarus and the heavily militarised Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.

He said: “These countries are constantly rattling their weapons. It is sad. They just can’t understand that it was the build-up of military activity on the borders of Russia and Belarus that became one of the factors, one of the reasons for the current large, acute, and very dangerous crisis on the European continent.”

Last month, Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania announced their withdrawal from the Ottawa Convention banning anti-personnel mines, citing what their defence ministers described as a “fundamentally deteriorated” security situation caused by Russian aggression.

The Kremlin’s rhetoric has grown increasingly hostile towards NATO member states in recent months, with Russian officials frequently implying that the bloc – rather than Moscow – is responsible for escalating tensions on the continent.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine warned on April 13 that if Russia is not stopped, its next step could be to seize NATO territory – triggering a global war.

Western intelligence agencies have also warned that Russia may be preparing for a major confrontation with NATO within the next five years.

However, the United States has also been pressuring unity within the alliance.

Several figures in Donald Trump’s inner circle have suggested cutting NATO funding, while the White House is reportedly considering withdrawing 10,000 US troops from Eastern Europe.

Mr Trump has previously threatened to “encourage” Russia to do “whatever the hell they want” to NATO countries which fail to meet their defence spending targets.

Billionaire Elon Musk, one of Mr Trump’s most prominent supporters, has openly called for the US to withdraw from the alliance entirely.

In response to the latest threats, leaders in Poland and the Baltics have stepped up calls for clarity from Washington – and for urgent reassurance that NATO’s Article 5 guarantee still stands.

They argue that Russia’s strategy is clear: to divide the alliance, intimidate its most exposed members, and test the West’s willingness to respond.

The reports come days after a Russian missile strike killed 34 people in the Ukrainian city of Sumy.

In Kherson Oblast, Governor Prokudin said 11 people were injured and critical and social infrastructure damaged during Russian airstrikes and shelling over last day.