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WASHINGTON- (77WABC)- President Biden plans to send a small number of U.S. forces to Eastern Europe in the “near term” amid growing fears of a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“I’ll be moving troops to Eastern Europe in the NATO countries in the near term,” Biden told reporters at Joint Base Andrews upon returning from a trip to Pittsburgh. “Not too many.”
The Hill reporting that the Pentagon has put 8,500 troops on heightened alert for potential deployment to NATO countries in Eastern Europe,nand Biden’s comments seemed to signal definitively that at least some of those forces would deploy soon. Most of the troops are expected to join a NATO rapid response force in Eastern Europe.
“We don’t believe that President Putin has made a final decision to use these forces against Ukraine,” Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters earlier Friday. “He clearly now has that capability.”
Ukraine has disagreed, however, arguing that an invasion is not imminent and taking issue with the heightened rhetoric of U.S. officials and the decision by the State Department earlier this week to urge Americans and family members of embassy officials to leave Ukraine.
Biden spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday during and stressed that the U.S. and European allies would “respond decisively” in the event of an invasion. Biden also said there was a “distinct possibility” Russia could invade Ukraine in February, according to the White House.
Russia has staged more than 100,000 troops at the Ukrainian border and recently conducted military drills in Belarus.
