Belgian Defense Minister Theo Francken vows Moscow would face annihilation if Russia ever targeted Brussels, reaffirming NATO’s united deterrence stance.
Belgium’s Defense Minister Theo Francken has issued a stark warning to Moscow, declaring that any Russian missile attack on Brussels would provoke an overwhelming North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) response capable of obliterating the Russian capital.
Speaking to Belgium’s De Morgen newspaper on Monday October 27, 2025, Francken said his country and its NATO allies would not hesitate to retaliate if Russia attempted a strike on the alliance’s political heart. “If President Vladimir Putin launches a missile at Brussels, we will wipe Moscow off the map,” he said, underscoring NATO’s collective defense principle under Article 5.
Francken dismissed doubts about Washington’s commitment to European security under President Donald Trump, insisting the transatlantic alliance remains firm. “The bias against the American government is so great in Europe. Unbelievable,” he said. “President Trump has made it clear that America will continue to support its NATO allies one hundred percent. A cruise missile on Brussels? That’s a no-brainer. Putin won’t do that either.”
The Belgian minister cautioned, however, against underestimating Russia’s expanding military production. “The Russians have increased their capabilities. Their war economy produces four times more ammunition than all of NATO combined,” he said. “Europe doesn’t even have a central command.”
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Francken also pointed to the ongoing war in Ukraine as evidence of Moscow’s limits, noting that Kyiv’s resistance depends heavily on Western aid. “Russia is struggling in Ukraine because they’re fighting against the entire West. The Ukrainians are fighting with our weapons, ammunition, and money. Otherwise, they would have been overwhelmed long ago,” he remarked.
Looking to future geopolitical threats, Francken warned that China’s growing cooperation with Russia poses a longer-term danger to Western stability. “China wants the war in Ukraine to drag on because it weakens the West,” he said. “It’s buying Russian raw materials, supplying weapons, and is perfectly happy for Putin to deploy North Korean troops.”
Still, the Belgian minister considered a direct Russian assault on NATO’s eastern flank less probable. “A major Russian attack on the Baltic states is unlikely. Those are NATO member states, after all,” he said. “Soon, we’ll have six hundred F-35 fighter jets stationed across Europe — the Russians fear them because they can’t see them.”
Francken’s comments come amid mounting European anxiety over Moscow’s nuclear rhetoric and NATO’s readiness as the war in Ukraine grinds through its third year.
Africa Daily News, New York
