We have to face reality. NATO right now is a bad joke. Yes its welcome news the professional Nordic militaries have joined, Finland most of all. Bust back in my day, and I do remember, there was a lot of integration in NATO forces. Integration that just doesn't much exist right now. In other words we just dont practice together much with what we do have and we just don't have all that much.
With America and the UK its not as big a problem but the UK's professional forces have grown weak and America's are dispersed all over the world and our dispersal weakens us. I doub't we could even fight one major war and one regional one. In the 1970's we'd be able to fight two majors and one regional "with help from allies". We are becoming a multi-polar world where America's influence and power will wane. MSNBC might have you thinking that would be a good thing and "Orange man bad" but in reality it would be a disaster for freedom loving peoples everywhere.
This multi-Polar power grab is happening on several fronts. The war against western currencys, most of all the USD, is just as critical a battle as would be the crushing of Taiwan and Russian armored legions crushing the Baltics and beyond. Iran is another front where the Theocracy is of use to the Chinese because it secures their oil supplies while Middle East instability is of use to the CCP. They lock away the Muslims within their own borders yet supply them with arms, money, and Intel where it serves their interests in Euro-Asia and Africa. Instability is a key component in the creation of a Multi-Polar world that empowers the yuan and in-debts nations and regions long term. Thats what the Belts and Roads Initiative is. In 12 short years China has become the worlds banker in many developing countries. Countries that have no hope of ever getting out from under the loans and those with natural resources will end up having to dance to China's tunes.
In the end China will shift from being banker to debt collector and these countries will end up poorer. Russia tried the same only with force of arms, their army turning out being not worth a shit. Ukraine was the gem of the Soviet Empire. Loaded with oil, natural gas, rare earths, iron ore, Titanium, Industry's, and all sorts of good stuff. It supplied 1/3'rd of the Union's natural gas at one time. All this is why Staling sent all those indigent to Siberia and replaced them with white Russian's after WW2 with orders to start screwing and making babies. In general the occupied Euro-provinces of the Soviet Slave state were more productive and valuable then Russia itself was. No wonder Putin wants to steal them back.
First tho he has to steal Ukraine and from there the Baltics. He already has a base in Kalinigrad he has loaded with nukes and every weapon he could think of. If he can then take Poland, especially if he lights a nuke or two, the rest of NATO wont really wont to get involved. Already most don't have much power to begin with, or may even change sides. Turkey sent their entire Navy to Somalia to steal their oil. Italy, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Romania, Albania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Albania, Croatia, Montenegro and North Macedonia, Luxembourg, Portugal, Spain....These countries either can't fight their way out of a paper bag or have no way of projecting any power. They joined to get the Americans to do their fighting.
And thats what Putin's counting on. NATO beating itself. And he may well be right but first he has to take Ukraine.