President Joe Biden has approved the deployment of about 2,000 American troops to Eastern Europe this week and the shift of roughly 1,000 Germany-based soldiers to Romania, a senior administration official said Wednesday. The troops will be sent from Fort Bragg, North Carolina to Poland and Germany.
Their purpose, according to Biden administration officials, will be to reassure NATO allies that while the United States has no intention of sending troops into Ukraine, it would protect America’s NATO allies from any Russian aggression.
Biden has said before that he will not put American troops in Ukraine to fight against Russian forces. However, the United States is supplying Ukraine with defense weapons.
The military orders come amid stalled talks with Russia over its increased military presence at Ukraine’s borders, contributing to fears across Europe that Russian President Vladimir Putin will soon invade Ukraine. Smaller NATO countries on the alliance’s eastern border worry they could be next, though Russia has said it has no intention of initiating conflict and is willing to continue diplomatic efforts.
The Pentagon also has put about 8,500 U.S.-based troops on high alert for possible deployment to Europe as additional reassurance to allies. The U.S. already has between 75,000 and 80,000 troops in Europe as permanently stationed forces and as part of regular rotations in places such as Poland.
In his first public remarks on the standoff in more than a month, Putin on Tuesday accused the U.S. and its allies of ignoring Russia’s central security demands, but said Moscow is willing to talk more to ease tensions over Ukraine.
His remarks suggested that a potential Russian invasion may not be imminent and that at least one more round of diplomacy is likely.
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