Ukraine crisis: Biden to deploy more US troops to eastern Europe

Joe Biden will deploy more than 3,000 US troops in Germany, Poland and Romania, as Russia continues to build up its forces around Ukraine, and after talks between Washington and Moscow failed to ease tensions.

The US is sending 1,700 troops from the 82nd Airborne Division to Poland, a headquarters unit of about 300 from the 18th Airborne Corps will move to Germany and a 1,000-strong armoured unit is being transferred from Germany to Romania.

Kirby said the troops being deployed in the coming days were being sent under bilateral agreements with the host countries.

European diplomats, however, said that German caution in responding to the crisis was more an obstacle to a rapid activation of the NRF than Hungarian obstructionism.

The vanguard of the NRF has been under French command since January and its core is a 3,500-strong Franco-German brigade. The Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, welcomed the US deployments and said the alliance could take similar steps to bolster its eastern flank.

The decision to deploy US troops follows an exchange of documents between the US, Nato and Russia setting out their respective positions on European security, and a series of phone calls between the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, and the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov.

According to a leaked copy of the US and Nato proposals, the US is ready to negotiate on limiting deployments of missiles in Europe and combat troops in Ukraine if Russia draws back its military and makes reciprocal commitments.

Kirby confirmed the authenticity of the documents, which were published on Wednesday in the Spanish newspaper El País. Both the US and Nato had sought to keep their written proposals private to facilitate tense negotiations with Russia.

While the leak may embarrass Washington, the documents show that the US position in public and private are similar: calling for de-escalation via negotiations on arms control and other largely technical issues, while warning of tough consequences in case Russia launches an invasion of Ukraine.

The document suggested confidence-building measures on military exercises and arms control in Europe, as well as deconfliction efforts to avoid an accidental military clash.

It also carried careful demands for the Russian side to draw down its forces near Ukraine. Russia has moved more than an estimated 125,000 troops within striking distance of the Ukrainian border, including nearly half of its available battalion tactical groups and support units.

At the same time, Russia has continued its buildup along the Ukrainian border, including from Belarus and the annexed Crimean peninsula. An investigation by the online Conflict Intelligence Team shows that Russian national guard units and possibly riot police have also been deploying to the border region. Those forces could be used to hold ground in case of a Russian attack, analysts have said.

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