WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) – In view of the tense situation in the Ukraine conflict, US President Joe Biden wants to send around 2,000 soldiers from the USA to Germany and Poland. The US Department of Defense announced on Wednesday in Washington that 1,000 US soldiers would be transferred from Germany to Romania. The troop deployments are expected in the next few days, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said. These are not permanent transfers.
“The current situation requires that we step up deterrence and defense preparedness on NATO’s eastern flank,” Kirby said. The transfer of troops is an “unmistakable signal” to the world that the USA stands by its allies. If necessary, there could also be further troop movements in the future. Kirby emphasized that the troops who have now been deployed should be viewed separately from the 8,500 soldiers who are already on standby.
On Biden’s orders, 8,500 soldiers in the United States were put on stand-by last week to enable rapid deployment to Europe if necessary. Biden had emphasized that it was a precautionary measure to address the concerns of Eastern European NATO members. The President and other members of the government have repeatedly made it clear that no US soldiers would be sent to Ukraine.
At the end of last week, Biden finally announced that a troop transfer would be imminent. Tens of thousands of US soldiers are regularly stationed in Europe, including around 35,000 in Germany, even outside of times of crisis.
With more than 100,000 Russian troops deployed near Ukraine, there are growing fears in the West that Russia is planning an invasion of its neighbor. The Kremlin denies that. However, it is also possible that Moscow only wants to stir up fears in order to persuade the NATO states to make concessions on demands for new security guarantees.
Russia wants to get NATO to rule out further easter expansion and, in particular, the admission of Ukraine. It also calls for a withdrawal of NATO troops from the eastern alliance states. Moscow has addressed a corresponding list of demands to NATO and the USA. Both reject Russia’s core concerns, but have offered dialogue in written replies./jac/DP/stk