Pentagon defends its preparation for Ukraine crisis, details military forces that could deploy
Source: Washington Post
The Pentagon defended its preparation in response to the threat of a new Russian invasion of Ukraine, with a top spokesman on Thursday highlighting that the United States has provided millions of dollars in weapons to Ukraine since last spring and providing new details about U.S. military forces who could deploy to Eastern Europe to bolster security there.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said that the United States has for months been monitoring Russian President Vladimir Putin’s military buildup along the Ukrainian border. More than 100,000 Russian troops are amassed, including some in neighboring Belarus.
“I take issue with the idea that this is sort of eleventh-hour, Hail Mary pass-throwing stuff,” Kirby said. “We’ve been talking about this now for a couple of months, what we’ve been seeing on the ground.”
The comments came as the U.S. military prepared to potentially send thousands of troops from the United States to Europe. Kirby identified for the first time that elements of the 82nd Airborne Division and XVIII Airborne Corps of Fort Bragg, N.C., the 101st Airborne Division of Fort Campbell, Ky., and the 4th Infantry Division of Fort Carson, Colo., are among an initial force of 8,500 troops that were put on high alert this week and could be among the first to go.
Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/pentagon-defends-its-preparation-for-ukraine-crisis-details-military-forces-that-could-deploy/ar-AATdtmb
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