US Special Forces, Tanks Arrive in Europe to Support NATO vs. Russia

We Are Change

Hundreds of US tanks, trucks arrive in Germany for NATO mission to counter Russian aggression.

Article via Zero Hedge

As previously reported, Lithuania confirmed the presence of U.S. special forces inside its territory, stating the deployment’s purpose is to train local forces and act as a deterrent against Russian aggression.

Supposedly, the move is in response to a “escalation” by Vladimir Putin, who has been deploying nuke-ready missiles in the Russian province of Kaliningrad located in the heart of central Europe.

This move has prompted the neighboring Baltic states to become “highly concerned” about Russian military activity.

Furthermore, sometime during the spring of 2017, NATO is expected to send battalions of 800 to 1,200 troops to each of the Baltic States and Poland. The mainstream media has even dubbed NATO’s recent buildup the alliance’s “biggest military buildup on Russia’s borders since the Cold War.” Even Great Britain will be sending fighter jets, as well as troops to Romania in order to counter Russia in the region.

Over the last several years, Russia has made it abundantly clear in the past that its deployment of missiles is a deterrent against NATO expansion along its borders, in what is effectively a cat-and-mouse game that continues to be played with catastrophic consequences, and which neither side can win.

Meanwhile, as part of the latest conventional arms race, on Friday hundreds of U.S. tanks, trucks and other military equipment arrived by ship in Germany to be transported by rail and road to eastern Europe as part of a NATO buildup that has drawn Russia’s ire.

According to Reuters, two shiploads arrived in the northern port of Bremerhaven and a third was due in a few days, bringing the fleets of tracked and wheeled vehicles for use by around 4,000 U.S. troops being deployed for exercises in NATO states near Russia.

U.S. and Polish forces will participate in a large “massing” exercise in Poland at the end of January as part of a series of measures aimed at reassuring U.S. allies in Europe after Russia’s 2014 annexation of the Crimea region of Ukraine.

Beginning in February, U.S. military units will spread out across Poland, the Baltic states, Bulgaria, Romania and Germany for training, exercises and maintenance.

“The best way to maintain the peace is through preparation,” Major General Timothy McGuire told reporters when asked if the large deployment was meant to send a message to Russia.

He also admitted that “this is just showing the strength and cohesion of the alliance and the U.S. commitment to maintain the peace on the continent.”

It is also a provocation specifically designed to provoke Putin into further escalation, something which Obama also did last week with the expuslion of 35 Russian diplomats.

NATO countries say their planned deployments to eastern NATO countries are purely defensive, but Russia has rebuked what it sees as an aggressive western buildup in eastern Europe.

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This article first appeared on ZeroHedge.com.

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