Mr Biden is sending about 2,000 troops from Fort Bragg, NC to Poland and Germany this week and about 1,000 troops to Romania, a German-based infantry striker in Romania on the eastern side of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization closest to Russia. Part of the Squadron. , officials said.
In addition, the Pentagon expects other moves of forces inside Europe, and ordered several thousand more troops to be on standby, beyond the 8,500 troops ordered similarly last week, officials said. Is.
Overall, the move is aimed at preventing Russia from attacking Ukraine and averting a war in Eastern Europe, officials said. Along with these moves, the Biden administration is trying to find a diplomatic solution, creating a barrage of economic sanctions to attack Russia and authorizing the transfer of some weapons and other equipment to Ukraine.
Russia on Thursday condemned the deployment of US forces in Eastern Europe. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Moscow was concerned about the decision and would take appropriate steps to protect Russia’s national security.
“We constantly ask our American counterparts to stop escalating tensions on the European continent,” Peskov said. “Unfortunately, Americans continue to do so. And in this case, we’re not just talking about provocative statements that war will come soon.” [in which] Everyone will pay a terrible price. It’s about sending American troops to European countries close to our borders.”
“Obviously, these are not steps that are aimed at reducing tension, but on the contrary, these are actions that increase this tension,” said Mr. Peskov.
He added that Russia’s concern is “absolutely understandable, absolutely justified, and absolutely understandable any measures taken by Russia to ensure its security and interests.”
There is no intelligence that indicates that Russian President Vladimir Putin may invade Eastern European countries such as Romania or Poland, but as a NATO member, the US has a treaty obligation to provide those countries with collective defense. And using those deployments to send a signal. colleague and Mr. Putin. There is no such provision for Ukraine, which is not a member of NATO.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said, “It’s not soldiers who will go to Ukraine, they’re not fighting in Ukraine, it’s the United States of America to support and reassure our allies in the region to comply with our commitments under Article 5.” Has been doing.” For the provision of NATO that provides for the collective defense of NATO allies.
Biden signed the military proposals on Tuesday after a meeting with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Army, General Mark Milley, officials said. Mr. Austin discussed deployment with his counterparts in Romania, Germany and Poland last week.
Officials said a few hundred US military trainers and special operations forces are inside Ukraine, but no new forces have been authorized to enter the country, and all deployments are expected to be temporary.
The forces are expected to be deployed in the next few days, the officials said, refusing to provide details on their specific missions.
Romania already has about 900 US troops, which in recent days have agreed to host French troops as well.
“They are trained and equipped for various missions during this period of high risk,” a senior defense official said. The deployment is also “to stifle the threat against the Alliance. We’re really keen to put skin in the game.”
While there is no evidence that Russia poses an immediate threat to Poland, its increased military presence in Belarus near the Polish border warns of potential threats, said William Courtney, a former US ambassador to Kazakhstan and Rand. A senior partner of the corporation said.
Defense officials said that of the 2,000 troops deployed, about 1,700 were going to Poland while the remaining 300 were going to Germany. German-bound forces are likely to support US movements as there is no permanent US base in Eastern Europe, Courtney said.
“The deployment provides more political reassurance to allies on the East Coast and can help connect local troops with US and other NATO forces in the event of hostilities,” Courtney said.
The official said some of the new forces could also be used if the US military was asked to help evacuate some 30,000 Americans living in Ukraine. To do so, the official said, is unlikely to send troops inside Ukraine and will instead facilitate a ground evacuation operation along the Ukrainian border.
On Tuesday, Mr Putin accused the US of trying to push Moscow into the war, while he hoped “negotiations would continue.” In a phone call with UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Wednesday, Mr Putin pointed to what he described as Kiev. “The chronic subversion of the Minsk agreements,” a 2015 peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine, and NATO’s reluctance to adequately respond to Russian concerns, the Kremlin read, according to their talks. Officials in the Biden administration have said they do not think Mr Putin has decided whether to attack, although he may do so in the next few weeks.
Ms Psaki, who indicated last week that a Russian offensive was imminent, said the administration is not using that word intentionally because it sends false signals about Mr Putin. That said, Moscow could still invade Ukraine “at any time”.
Last week, Mr Austin placed at least 8,500 US troops on “deployment-ready orders”, requiring troops to be ready to deploy quickly, in some cases, within hours of being activated. is required.
Since then, that figure has increased by several thousand more soldiers, officials said, to more than 12,000. Officials said some troops being activated in Europe this week are being drawn from a large number of soldiers already identified on standby.
The primacy of those forces on standby will contribute to the NATO response force that is being assembled in case Mr. Putin moves forward with plans to attack Ukraine.
Other US forces, already stationed in Eastern Europe, could be transferred to NATO countries as part of an overall response to the crisis, which US officials say has led Mr Putin to build a military base on three sides of Ukraine. Created by conducting the buildup.
Russia denies that it plans to invade, although it has said it will if Ukraine is not allowed to join NATO and its demands to withdraw the alliance from Eastern Europe are ignored. If so, he may have to resort to military measures.
Mr Biden said over the weekend that some US forces could be put on alert to deploy within Eastern Europe, and the Pentagon said on Monday that those deployments were still being considered. Mr Biden has said the US military will not defend Ukraine, but has promised to support allies.
If the troops on standby are activated, they will be deployed in logistics, medical, aviation, transport and other areas in NATO countries such as Poland and Lithuania in Eastern Europe, according to defense officials. The Pentagon has said it may also deploy troops to support intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions with drones.
The US decision to prepare the military is one of a series of military adjustments in the coalition. The Netherlands, Spain and Denmark are among the NATO countries that began positioning ships and aircraft to fortify the eastern part of Europe. Canada said it would expand its training program in Ukraine, using more than 400 troops, for the next three years.
Russia has massed more than 100,000 troops near the Ukrainian border, moving troops and surface-to-air missile systems to Belarus, which borders Ukraine and several NATO members, and the Black Sea and Sea. It has also moved several ships near the shores of Ukraine. of Azov.
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