Thread by @PaulaChertok

💥Biden Weighs Deploying Several Thousand US Troops—As Well As Warships & Aircraft—To NATO Allies In Eastern Europe and Baltics, a less restrained response amid mounting fears of a #Russian incursion into #Ukraine - The New York Times nytimes.com/2022/01/23/us/…

NYT: Senior Pentagon officials presented Biden several options that would shift US military assets to Eastern Europe. "options include sending 1,000 to 5,000 troops to Eastern European countries, with the potential to increase that number tenfold if things deteriorate." #Ukraine

Biden weighs buildup as Russia escalated menacing Ukraine—100k troops on border + in Belarus

Blinken: US is building up defense, bldg up deterrence. NATO will continue to be reinforced in a significant way if Russia commits renewed acts of aggression. All of that is on the table

"So far, none of the military options being considered include deploying additional American troops to Ukraine itself, and Mr. Biden has made clear that he is loath to enter another conflict following America’s painful exit from Afghanistan"
#Russia #Ukraine

🔥"[A]fter years of tiptoeing around … how much military support to provide to Ukraine, for fear of provoking Russia, Biden officials have recently warned that the [U.S.] could throw its weight behind a Ukrainian insurgency should Mr. Putin invade Ukraine."
#Russia #Ukraine

Pentagon: “This is clearly in response to the sudden stationing of Russian forces in Belarus, on the border, essentially, with NATO. There is no way that NATO could not reply…[Russia is] only escalating the situation with all of these deployments … increasing the danger to all”

If Biden approves deployment, some troops would come from US & others would move from elsewhere in Europe to NATO’s vulnerable eastern flank

Possible ground troop reinforcements include more air defense, engineering, logistics, artillery forces, & more aircraft.
#Ukraine #Russia

USAF has been flying intelligence planes over #Ukraine since late Dec. to track #Russia's troop buildup & movement—>>"especially interested in any indication that Russia may deploy tactical nuclear weapons to the border, a move…Russian officials have suggested could be an option

In the event of a full-scale #Russia invasion, US intends to move its ~150 military trainers (in western #Ukraine for yrs) out of country quickly. "But it is possible that some Americans could stay to advise Ukrainian officials in Kyiv, the capital, or provide frontline support"

Move would be "Major pivot"— Biden had been taking a restrained stance on #Ukraine, out of fear of provoking #Russia into invading. But as Putin has ramped up his threatening actions toward Ukraine, and talks failed, the admin. is now moving away from its do-not-provoke strategy.