Pres. Joe Biden has approved news troop deployments to aid allies in the conflict between Ukraine and Russia. The Pentagon says they are ready to depart. This mission positions the U.S. as a committed NATO ally.
The Pentagon said on Wednesday morning that a new round of troops will be deployed to Eastern Europe in response to the building tensin between Russia and Ukraine.
The current deployment is a bi-lateral arrangement "at the express request of Romania." Our troops are at a heightened state of alert and are prepared for a range of missions on the Eastern flank, the Pentagon spokesman John Kirby explained. The posture is not "tactical" operation meant to defend Ukraine he stated, but is appears to be an advance effort to deter further action from Russia.
The 82nd Airborne "ready brigade" from Fort Bragg, NC is sending 3,000 troops, scheduled to deployed to Germany and Poland. There are more U.S. troops coming to the region from Europe. The French and other countries are also going to be providing support to NATO allies on the Eastern flank.
This is a temporary preparedness move as Russian leader Vladmir Putin continues to add forces in Belarus and the North Atlantic, showing no signs he is willing to de-escalate tensions with Ukraine.
"We do not know if Russia has made a final decision t further invade Ukraine, but it clearly has that capability. The U.S. has offered Russia a path to de-escalate. "
Russian Leader Vladmir Putin has accused the the U.S. of war-mongering.
The message the U.S. is sending, Kirby said, is in keeping with "Article 5" to defend our allies and to clearly reflect commitments to NATO.
"We will adjust this posture as things evolve. . .," Kirby states. leaving options open.
"NATO does not have veto power to deploy troops," Kirby said, to clear up media confusion about this. from the previous week.