Russia Strongly Condemns Transfer of US’ and Allies’ Troops to Europe, UN Envoy Says
06:46 GMT 11.02.2022 (Updated: 07:36 GMT 11.02.2022)
© AP Photo / CHRISTOF STACHE
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The US and its allies have deployed more troops to Europe in recent weeks. The US has declared the transfer of more than 8,000 soldiers to Eastern Europe. US President Joe Biden said that US troops will be moving to Eastern Europe and to NATO countries in the near future. In turn, UK announced the deployment of up to 350 military staff in Poland.
Russia strongly condemns the deployment of US’ and its allies’ troops as the steps into the wrong direction that have the potential to lead to crises, Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Dmitry Polyanskiy said.
"With regards the deployment by the Americans and their allies of their troops to Eastern Europe, we strongly condemn this policy. We believe that these are steps in the wrong direction that, instead of defusing the tensions, lead to the escalation of the situation and could provoke crises that we all would like to avoid," Polyanskiy said.
Polyanskiy also said the fact that the United States had already deployed about 175,000 troops in other countries cannot but worry Moscow, as well as does the placement of NATO’s military infrastructure near Russia’s borders. Polyanskiy did not rule out that the West is preparing a provocation in the Donbas in order to then accuse the Russian Federation of the invasion.
Earlier in the month, US Defense Department spokesperson John Kirby announced the United States’ decision to temporarily deploy additional US troops in Eastern Europe. Kirby said that a 1,000-member squadron would be moved from Germany to Romania to join the 900 US soldiers already present in the country. The first 100 US soldiers have already arrived in Romania as part of the deployment on Tuesday.
The precarious situation around Ukraine has worsened in recent weeks with the US and EU raising concerns over Russian military buildup at the Ukrainian border, and NATO urging allies to boost their military support for Kiev. The EU also expressed concerns over the possible disruption of Russia's energy supplies to Europe in the event of an escalation, while holding talks with the United States and other suppliers concerning the issue.
Russia in turn has on many occasions denied allegations of intending to invade its neighbor, pointing out that NATO's military activity near Russian borders poses a threat to its national security while hampering efforts toward peaceful resolution in Ukraine.
Russia in turn has on many occasions denied allegations of intending to invade its neighbor, pointing out that NATO's military activity near Russian borders poses a threat to its national security while hampering efforts toward peaceful resolution in Ukraine.
