Posted on 07/01/2014 2:27:52 PM PDT by Tailgunner Joe
WASHINGTON -- NATO’s top military commander said Monday that American troops from the United States will be dispatched to Europe starting in October to help respond to Russian aggression in Ukraine.
Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, supreme allied commander of the Western military alliance, said the U.S.-based troops will buttress American forces that have already been moved in recent months from Germany, Italy and elsewhere in Europe for stepped-up ground and air patrols in the three Baltic countries of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, plus Poland and Romania.
“It’s a very momentous time in Europe, probably the most since the end of the Cold War, especially because of the recent changes wrought by Russia,” Breedlove told reporters at the Pentagon.
Breedlove said Moscow has supplied pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine with tanks, armored personnel carriers, anti-aircraft artillery and other heavy weapons.
The four-star general, who assumed NATO command last year, said there’s “a very good likelihood” that the anti-aircraft artillery used to shoot down a Ukrainian transport plane June 14, killing all 42 people on board, came from Russia.
“We see in training on the (Russian) side of the border is big equipment, tanks, (armored personnel carriers), anti-aircraft capability, and now we see those capabilities being used on the (Ukrainian) side of the border,” Breedlove said.
Asked how many Russian troops have massed on the Ukraine border, Breedlove responded that there are “seven-plus battalion task groups on the east side of that border,” which would be on the order of 5,000 troops.
The Ukraine crisis started in mid-February when Russian paramilitary troops began seizing control of government buildings in the Crimean Peninsula.
That aggression was followed by a March 16 referendum that Moscow used to claim it had annexed the region, which has a large ethnic Russian population.
(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...
So how’s that “RESET” working out for you Oboma-bots?
It took Reagan to end the Cold War, and Obama to bring it back, only this time we are weak, and the war is likely to heat up.
Obama may hear about this in the news
Reagan had up to 435,000 there, that is a LOT of troops.
Reagan took some things seriously, for instance foreign policy, Rand Paul and Obama, not so much.
Key point, “starting in October”. Wonder what the holdup is? Those troops and heavy armor should have been on their way months ago.
This looks like a waste of money. There are two possibilities:
Breedlove said Moscow has supplied pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine with tanks, armored personnel carriers, anti-aircraft artillery and other heavy weapons.
And NATO supplied a whole air force to Libyan rebels, complete with NATO airplanes, pilots, and munitions.
Russia might respond with a nuclear attack if nato forces cross the border into Russia, but not if they cross the border into Ukraine.
The Soviets had an equivalent number of troops in Europe, including over 300,000 in East Germany. Yet they withdrew them all in 1994 and allowed German reunification. Want to guess what they were promised in return?
What?
stepped-up ground and air patrols in the three Baltic countries of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, plus Poland and Romania.
I understand about Poland and Romania, as they border Ukraine. But the Baltic states don't... they can only cross the border with Russia or Belarus.
Besides, foreign troops in Ukraine will not be welcomed by the majority. If that happens, it will only accelerate the dissolution of Ukraine into two states. One part (the larger one) goes to Russia, and another gets split between neighboring countries (Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Poland.) Ukraine will then disappear within a couple of weeks. I am not sure that this is the absolute best solution.
But on the subject of nukes... I agree, Putin won't use them in a local conflict. However he will quickly deploy sufficient forces at the natural division lines (old, pre-World War I borders) and the NATO will accept that. As matter of fact, this "war" will be over without a shot from NATO (or from Russia,) as it will be decided over the phone. You can call it another Sudetenland if you wish, but nobody is crazy enough to go against Russia on its home turf. At the same time Putin is not so stupid as to try to conquer Western Ukraine, populated by alien ethnic groups. He'd be satisfied if they are managed by those South European countries (and it will be a full time job for them.) Russia would lose control over those regions... but it has no such control now anyway; but it will gain full control over the rest of Ukraine *and* the Black Sea coastline. You win some, you lose some.
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