NATO Activates Response Force for First Time as US Readies More TroopsThe U.S. was preparing thousands of troops who could be called upon to support NATO after the alliance on Friday activated a rapid response force in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Pentagon said.
The activation by President Joe Biden and leaders of member states marks the first such use of the NATO Response Force to guard alliance territory, which does not include Ukraine. But it remained unclear how many American service members could participate as the alliance was still weighing its needs.
Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the force would be sent to the alliance's eastern flank, which borders Ukraine and the ongoing war triggered by Russia's invasion, according to The Associated Press.
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Some of the 7,000 troops that Biden said on Thursday will deploy to Germany could also be part of the NATO force, though the U.S. and NATO members have made clear it would not be sent to fight Russia in Ukraine. The U.S. has already deployed about 12,000 troops and equipment such as F-35 Lightning II fighter jets and Apache attack helicopters to Germany, Poland, Romania and the Baltic states.
"We are going to provide additional security assistance for Ukraine -- we will," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said. "How that is going to be done is still being worked out."
The Pentagon has said more than 11,000 troops have been put on heightened alert for deployment since January, but it could not provide exact figures on Friday of those who remain on alert or have been deployed...
https://www.military.com/daily-news/2022/02/25/nato-activates-response-force-first-time-us-readies-more-troops.html
