According to US sources, US President Joe Biden has sent 3,000 troops to Poland and Romania to support Eastern European NATO allies in the face of what Washington perceives as a Russian threat to attack Ukraine.
This comes as Russia builds up a force of over 100,000 troops on Ukraine’s borders. Moscow denies any plans to attack its neighbor, but warns that if its demands are not met, it may take unspecified military action.
Russian demands include a legally enforceable commitment from NATO that it will never admit Ukraine, which the United States has refused.
According to the Pentagon, a Stryker squadron of over 1,000 US service personnel based in Vilseck, Germany, will be moved to Romania, while another 1,700 military members, mostly from the 82nd Airborne Division, would be sent to Romania.
The goal, according to Pentagon spokesman John Kirby, was to send a “strong signal” to Russian President Vladimir Putin “and frankly, to the world” that NATO is important to the US and its partners.
“We know he is irritated by NATO and NATO-related issues. He’s made no attempt to hide it. We’ve made it clear that if the need arises, we’ll be ready to defend our NATO partners. Hopefully, this will not be the case.”
The deployment of the United States, according to Poland’s Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak, is a powerful statement of unity.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg also expressed his delight with the news, adding that the alliance’s response to Russia was defensive and appropriate. find out more
Efforts by NATO, Russia, and Ukraine to establish a diplomatic solution have failed.
President Emmanuel Macron of France said he will discuss the crisis with US Vice President Joe Biden in the coming hours and that he would not rule out visiting Putin in Russia. The key, according to Macron, is to prevent escalating tensions.
According to the Kremlin, Putin told Johnson that NATO was not appropriately reacting to Russia’s security concerns. According to Johnson’s office, he told Putin that military intervention would be a “tragic error,” and the two promised to work together in a “dialogue spirit.”
After Johnson accused Russia of holding a gun to Ukraine’s head, the Kremlin issued a comment.
It also comes after Putin claimed that the US was attempting to entice Moscow into a war by insisting on Ukraine joining NATO.
On Tuesday, Putin stated, “It’s obviously clear… that basic Russian concerns were overlooked.” He offered the following question when describing a scenario in which Ukraine joins NATO and subsequently assaults Russian forces: “Is it planned for us to go to war with the NATO alliance? Has anyone considered that possibility? It appears that this is not the case.”