US President Joe Biden said that the United States intends to transfer troops to the Eastern European NATO countries in the near future. The agency reported Reuters.
I will move US troops to Eastern Europe, to NATO countries, in the near future. Not too much
Sending the military
Earlier, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said that Biden has “neither the desire nor the time” to send American troops to Ukraine. According to her, the decision to put 8,500 US troops on high alert for deployment to Europe was made only to “support the eastern flank of NATO.”
The Chairman of the Committee of Chiefs of Staff (CNC) of the US Armed Forces, General Mark Milley, noted that the United States does not have offensive weapons and a permanent military contingent in Ukraine.
The US has no offensive weapons systems in Ukraine and no permanent forces. Our role is limited. We participate in the institutional development of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. We will continue to provide military material support to Ukraine
According to Milley, there are a small number of US and NATO advisers and instructors in Ukraine who help train the Ukrainian military in combat tactics. However, the Pentagon spokesman assured that if Russia invades Ukraine, it will not pass without consequences.
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According to Bulgarian Defense Minister Stefan Yanev, there are currently 206 American rangers in the country with the appropriate weapons and military equipment. The head of the Ministry of Defense specified that the rangers are taking part in joint exercises with the Bulgarian army, which will last until the end of June.
At the same time, Yanev stressed that in the event of an escalation of the conflict with Russia, the Bulgarian army would refuse to participate in the NATO operation on the territory of Ukraine and would focus on maintaining the collective security system with an emphasis on its own defensive potential.
It also became known that the United States made a request to deploy its troops on the territory of Hungary. This was told by the Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto. At the same time, he noted that he knows nothing about the thousands of troops that NATO wants to deploy in Eastern and Central Europe.
military aid
Earlier, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine announced the arrival of 45 American aircraft with American weapons worth $200 million, including defense equipment: ammunition, counter-battery weapons, anti-tank weapons, and small arms. In addition, the defense ministry recalled that the governments of Poland and the Baltic countries also decided to provide Ukraine with logistical assistance in 2022.
This is part of a new package of US military aid to Kiev. Its first batch arrived in the country on January 25. Ukraine received a batch of lethal weapons from the United States, including FGM-148 Javelin anti-tank missile systems.
In Germany, they refused to supply lethal weapons to Kiev, referring to the official position of the government, according to which the export of weapons to crisis regions is impossible. In addition, the official representative of the German cabinet, Steffen Hebestreit, criticized the shipment of such weapons by the United States.
In turn, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky made a statement that the Ukrainian army is no weaker than the armies of NATO countries, since it has combat experience. According to him, now Ukraine fully trusts its army.
These are not newbies, these are not some boys, this is a serious army, and if we are talking about an army of the NATO level, then, excuse me, I think that we are definitely not weaker than this level
In his opinion, the Ukrainian army is at least at the same level as the armies of the NATO countries, since the Ukrainian military is practical.
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Russian threat
Minister of Defense of Ukraine Oleksiy Reznikov, speaking in the Verkhovna Rada, estimated the number of Russian troops on the border between Russia and Ukraine. According to him, there are about 112 thousand military personnel. According to Reznikov, this number does not include the sea and aviation components.
At the same time, the United States admitted that Russia really has no plans to invade Ukraine yet. According to the representative of the alliance, in order to launch an invasion of such a large country, it is necessary to prepare more military and equipment than is currently observed. However, in his opinion, Russia’s reluctance to start a war can also be explained by the fact that in the event of an escalation, Western countries will intervene. According to the NATO representative, such an attack could lead to the outbreak of a third world war.
At the same time, Mark Milley, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, compared the situation on the border between Russia and Ukraine to the height of the Cold War. Despite this, the department said that the United States does not consider the escalation inevitable, but sees “the time and place” for a diplomatic settlement of the crisis.
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Russia’s position
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Russia is not interested in a war with Ukraine. According to him, if the start or prevention of a war with Ukraine depends only on Russia, then now we can say for sure: it will not happen.
We do not want wars, but we will not allow our interests to be rudely attacked, our interests to be ignored either.
Washington welcomed the words of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov about Moscow’s unwillingness to start a war with Ukraine. The American authorities expressed their readiness to listen to Russia’s position on January 31 at a meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Ukraine. At the same time, Washington added that they do not expect the adoption of any documents following the meeting.
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