Having just removed the last U.S. battle tanks from Europe, the U.S. is not ready for either or cold or hot war with Russia over Ukraine, and Obama had already said that the U.S. and NATO have no plan to use force in Ukraine. So why is he sending 600 troops to 4 E. European countries who border on Russia and Ukraine? Does he actually think the Russian Army, with 360,000 soldiers, would be deterred by our 600?
Ben Watson reports for Defense One, April 22, 2014:
The Pentagon is sending about 600 U.S. troops from the 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team to Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia in a show of support for Eastern European countries uneasy with Russian forces still lingering near Ukraine.
“Nothing we’ve seen out of Russia or their armed forces, is de-escalating the tension, is making things any more stable in Ukraine or on the continent of Europe,” Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby told reporters Tuesday.
The first steps of the increased U.S troop presence will occur in Poland and involves approximately 150 paratroopers from the 173rd, based in Vicenza, Italy. Those troops are expected to arrive Wednesday.
The 173rd, which has deployed once to Iraq and four times to Afghanistan since 2003, was already on call to help with NATO security in Europe, led by the alliance’s top military…
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