Washington:The Pentagon ordered 8,500 troops on higher alert to potentially deploy to Europe as part of a NATO “response force” amid growing concern that Russia could soon make a military move on Ukraine.
President Joe Biden consulted with key European leaders, underscoring US solidarity with allies there.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s leaders sought to reassure the nation that a feared invasion from neighbouring Russia was not imminent, even as they acknowledged the threat is real and prepared to accept a shipment of American military equipment to shore up their defences. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the situation was “under control” and that there is “no reason to panic”.
Putting the US-based troops on heightened alert for Europe on Monday suggested diminishing hope that Russian President Vladimir Putin will back away from what Biden himself has said looks like a threat to invade neighboring Ukraine.
At stake, beyond the future of Ukraine, is the credibility of a NATO alliance that is central to US defence strategy but that Putin views as a Cold War relic and a threat to Russian security. For Biden, the crisis represents a major test of his ability to forge a united allied stance against Putin.
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said about 8,500 US-based troops were being put on alert for possible deployment — not to Ukraine but to NATO territory in Eastern Europe. Russia denies it is planning an invasion.
Biden held an 80-minute video call with several European leaders on the Russian military buildup and potential responses to an invasion.
“I had a very good meeting… total unanimity with all European leaders,” Biden told reporters at the White House.
Ukraine Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov said that, as of Monday, that Russia’s armed forces had not formed what he called battle groups, “which would have indicated that they would launch an offensive.”