What’s
the story?
- The
Dept. of Defense (DOD) announced Wednesday
that the U.S. will deploy an additional 3,000
troops to North Atlantic Treaty Organization
(NATO) member countries in Eastern Europe amid
Russia’s ongoing military buildup on Ukraine’s
borders.
- The
deployment will involve troops currently in
Europe and in the continental U.S. and is being
done on a bilateral
or trilateral basis at the
invitation of the governments involved. It’s
distinct from the 8,500
American troops who were placed on heightened
readiness as part of the NATO Response
Force.
- An
Army Stryker squadron with 1,000 troops who are
currently in Germany will go to Romania in the
next few days, where they’ll join 900
servicemembers already in the country.
- An
additional 2,000 troops from the 82nd Airborne
Division and the 18th Airborne Corps will deploy
from Fort Bragg, North Carolina in the next few
days. That movement includes an infantry brigade
combat team from the 82nd who will go to Poland
and a joint-task-force-capable headquarters unit
element of the 18th who will be deployed to
Germany. (Both the 82nd Airborne Division and
the 18th Airborne Corps also have other troops
on heightened readiness as part of the NATO
Response Force.)
- The
U.S. and NATO aren’t moving troops to Ukraine,
which isn’t a member of the alliance, as efforts
to help Ukraine’s military have been limited to
training support and the provision of equipment
like shoulder-fired anti-tank and anti-air
missiles. Pentagon Press Secretary John
Kirby told
the press that the deployments
are to “reinforce the deterrent posture on
NATO’s eastern flank” and “to ensure the robust
defense of our NATO allies.”
The
Latest on Russia’s Military Buildup
- Over
the last several months, Russia has undertaken a
significant military buildup on Ukraine’s border
with well over 100,000 troops in close proximity
to the border and more personnel in staging
areas where they could quickly be moved to the
front.
- The
buildup is larger than what occurred before
Russia illegally annexed Crimea from Ukraine and
launched an invasion of the Donbas region in
eastern Ukraine in 2014, where it still supports
a separatist insurgency. The ongoing conflict
has led to more than 14,000 deaths to date.
- The
Russian military presence has grown to more than
130,000 troops in areas near Ukraine’s border in
recent days and is expected to grow larger as
troops arrive in Belarus for what Russia says
are planned exercises.
- Russia’s
buildup also involves advanced equipment,
including several short-range Iskander ballistic
missile brigades and some of its S-400
surface-to-air missile system. It also has
a significant
naval presence in the Mediterranean
Sea, where Russian warships from
the Baltic Fleet and Pacific Fleet are linking
up.
- It’s
still unclear whether Putin has decided to
attack Ukraine, and he has said he has no plans
to do so. Kirby said on Wednesday that U.S.
officials still
don’t know whether Putin has made up his mind
whether to re-invade Ukraine.
However, the multi-pronged buildup of military
assets gives Putin the ability to threaten
Ukraine by land from the south via Crimea, from
the east via the Donbas, or the north from
Belarus; and by sea through a potential
amphibious landing from the Black Sea.
- Russia
is reportedly laying the groundwork for
a “false
flag” operation to use as justification for an
attack on Ukraine. On January 27th,
the U.S. announced
sanctions against several
Russian-backed officials who were being
recruited to undermine Ukraine’s government and
to prepare to take over the country’s government
and control the country’s critical
infrastructure during a Russian occupation. The
British government said it also has gathered
intelligence about an effort
by Moscow to install a pro-Kremlin leader in
Ukraine through a coup.
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