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Biden shifts some 3,000 U.S. troops closer to Ukraine

By Bill Chappell

Published February 2, 2022 at 6:56 PM EST

Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby says the U.S. is bolstering allied positions in countries near Ukraine, as Russia masses troops near its Ukrainian border. [Alex Wong / Getty Images] — Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby says the U.S. is bolstering allied positions in countries near Ukraine, as Russia masses troops near its Ukrainian border.

President Biden is moving roughly 3,000 U.S. troops closer to Ukraine, where tensions are running high after Russia positioned a large military force along the two countries' border.

"These are not permanent moves," Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said Wednesday, emphasizing that the forces will not fight in Ukraine.

The troops are being sent to bolster positions in Poland, Romania and Germany — although Kirby said the movements aren't being carried out through NATO.

The U.S. already has some 60,000 troops based in Europe. Russia has massed about 127,000 troops near its Ukrainian border, former Ukrainian defense minister Andriy Zagorodnyuk recently told NPR. In Zagorodnyuk's view, the Russian force isn't large enough to mount a full-scale invasion.

The U.S. troop shift has two main steps. In the first, about 1,000 personnel from a Stryker squadron in the 2nd Cavalry Regiment based in Vilseck, Germany, will deploy to Romania, where more than 900 U.S. service members are already stationed.

The force will have "armored fighting vehicles to deter aggression and enhance our defensive capabilities in frontline Allied states during this period of elevated risk," the Pentagon said in a summary of the plan.

The second part of the operation will send around 3,000 total troops to Poland and Germany. Those personnel will be drawn from Fort Bragg in North Carolina — about 1,700 members of the 82nd Airborne Division and 300 service members of the 18th Airborne Corps.

As part of those plan, the 18th Airborne Corps will move a "Joint Task Force-capable headquarters" to Germany, the Pentagon says.

The U.S. is keeping another 8,500 personnel in reserve. Those troops have been on a heightened alert since Jan. 24 and are available if a NATO Response Force is activated.

"We continue to review our force posture and the situation in Europe, as the gravity of this situation demands our full attention," the Department of Defense said.

NPR's Tom Bowman contributed to this report.