As American military forces in Europe raise the risk of threat to the second most severe state of alarm offered by the military, a retired four-star naval officer Admiral James Stavridis says he is on high alert for a potential terrorist attack. 

“All of my signals are blinking red in terms of the potential for a terrorist attack against American interests in the U.S. or abroad in the next few months,” the former NATO commander writes in a post on X. 

He adds: “The chance to disrupt the US election may be irresistible to our enemies.”

Over the weekend, American military forces raised the threat level at American bases in Europe to “Charlie,” the second-highest alert available, without explanation.  

The only tier above “Charlie” is Force Protection Condition Delta, which is only called after an attack has taken place. 

“I commanded dozens of major bases in Europe for 4 years as Supreme Allied Commander of NATO & Commander, US European Command,” Admiral Stavridis wrote in an earlier post. “We had plenty of scares, but nothing that required this level of alert.” 

The threat level was raised, due to “a combination of factors and not related to a single threat,” deputy Pentagon press secretary Sabrina Singh said during a briefing earlier this week. 

“U.S. European Command is taking steps to increase vigilance for our service members, their families and our facilities,” Ms. Singh said. “This was done out of an abundance of caution. I won’t get into more specifics.”

The announcement comes as Europe is hosting several high-profile events this month, including the 2024 European football championships and the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.