Did NATO Chief Tell People to Stock up Supplies for WW3?

Saber-rattling between NATO and Russia has intensified in the past month, including French President Emmanuel Macron repeating the possibility of sending ground troops to Ukraine.

Pierre Schill, the commander of France’s ground forces, said this week that it could command a 60,000-strong force in Ukraine and that troops would be ready if called upon.

With threats from Russia that any intervention in Ukraine could lead to wider global conflict, some have suggested that NATO is encouraging its member nations to stock supplies for World War 3.

The Claim

A March 20 post on X, formerly known as Twitter, by commentator Ian Miles Cheong that has been viewed 57,000 times, said: “NATO is now telling people to stock up on supplies in the event that WW3 begins tomorrow. Next-level fearmongering.

“You know none of them are actually taking this seriously because the media’s only talking about Kate Middleton, and European politicians and celebrities aren’t even bothering to hunker down and do anything that would even remotely imply that they’re thinking about any potential for a conflict with Russia.

“If they were really so pressed, they’d have started the draft and mobilized production on munitions instead of worrying about carbon taxes and climate change.”

The post included a video of Admiral Rob Bauer, Chair of the NATO military committee, in which he said “You need to have water, you need to have a radio on batteries and you need to have a flashlight on batteries to make sure that you can survive the first 36 hours. Things like that, it’s simple things.”

The Facts

While some of what Bauer said could be interpreted in the manner described by Cheong, the context of the conversation should be considered.

Bauer’s comments were taken from a joint press conference from January 18 where he did speak about preparedness, albeit with a little more depth than the truncated clip and social media post provides.

Bauer was asked for his reaction to Swedish citizens “panic buying radios that don’t need electricity”, tents, and signing up for self-defense forces. The Swedish government had recently warned citizens that “war could come” to the country, France 24 reported.

Bauer was also asked why NATO members had not made changes to their societies akin to a “war-fighting transformation” despite calls among leaders for that to happen.

He responded that “people have to understand they play a role, they’re part of the solution, society is part of the solution”, mentioning the roles of industry and the private sector, saying “it’s not just the job of the armed forces.”

“The fact that people find it [the talk of war] a surprise and as a result buy a radio on batteries that is great, it is part of the package that the Swedish government is talking about,” Bauer said.

“You need to have water you need to have a radio on batteries and you need to have a flashlight on batteries to make sure that you can survive the first 36 hours things like that.

“That’s simple things but it starts there, the realization that not everything is plannable not everything is going to be hunky dory in the next 20 years.

“I’m not saying it is going wrong tomorrow, but we have to realize it’s not a given that we are in peace and that’s why we have the plans, that’s why we are preparing for a conflict with Russia and the terror groups if it comes to it if they attack us. We’re not seeking any conflict but if they attack us we have to be ready.”

Bauer did not talk in detail about other areas of citizen preparations, which would also be in tandem with preparations made by industry, the private sector, and the military. There was no mandate, direct instruction, or longer shopping list that he suggested was necessary. He also did not refer to global or a world war conflict explicitly.

Although Bauer’s comments led to headlines highlighting his warning to prepare, the argument that NATO is telling citizens to “stock up supplies in the event that WW3 begins tomorrow” is a stretch.

Russian President Vladimir Putin this week spoke about the prospect of a full-scale conflict between Moscow and NATO that could lead to a “full-scale Third World War,” after he claimed victory in an election that has been condemned by the West as neither free nor fair.

Taking questions from reporters, Putin was asked about the possibility of a conflict between Russia and the West. He replied: “I think that everything is possible in the modern world.”

The Ruling

Needs Context.
Rob Bauer, Chair of the NATO military committee, said in January that NATO members and its societies should coordinate and prepare if conflict broke out, potentially with Russia or terrorist groups.

Bauer made suggestions of the kinds of preparations civilians could make such as having a supply of water, a torch and radio at home. It was not a mandate, nor an exhaustive list of supplies and the notion or descriptor “World War” was not mentioned in the context of the conversation.

FACT CHECK BY Newsweek’s Fact Check team