Secretary of Defense United States, Lloyd Austin, ordered to increase the number of troops in Europe. This step was taken in the aftermath of Russia's large-scale military attack on Ukraine, which began Thursday, February 24, 2022.
Quoted by VIVA Military from the official website of the United States Department of Defense, the Pentagon's Press Secretary, Rear Admiral (Ret.) John Kirby, confirmed Austin's instructions regarding the addition of US troops in Europe.
Austrin explained, the order for the addition of American troops was aimed at securing the allied countries that were members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Especially in Eastern European countries, which border Ukraine.
"Secretary Austin ordered additional movement of US troops currently stationed in Europe, to continue our support to NATO allies in eastern defense," Kirby said.
"This force consists of air elements and some ground troops, which will move into the European area of operation in the northeast and southeast wings of NATO countries in the coming days. We expect them to be deployed this weekend," he said.
Kirby revealed that currently the United States European Command has deployed eight units of F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter jets from Germany to a number of eastern countries.
Then, there were also 20 Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopter gunships sent from Germany to the Baltic. Another 12 Apache helicopters will also be transferred from Greece to Poland, which borders Ukraine.
Kirby further stated that America has more than 90 thousand personnel stationed in Europe. He ensured that all US troops in Europe had combat capabilities and were ready to be mobilized whenever orders came.
"Additional personnel are being repositioned to reassure our NATO allies, preventing any potential aggression against NATO countries," Kirby continued.
"They are part of the 90,000 United States troops who are already in Europe under orders, either on a rotational or permanent basis. And of course as you know, the United States retains a large number of forces capable of fighting in Europe," he said.