Source: ‘US Forces In Ukraine Amid Fears Of Russian Invasion’ (Worthy News Exclusive)
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – A high-ranking U.S. security official tells Worthy News there are American forces in Ukraine and that the United States will send 10,000 additional troops to Eastern Europe “in the next days.”
They are on top of tens of thousands of American military personnel already in Hungary, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, and the Baltics (Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia), he said.
Washington officially denies sending U.S. troops to Ukraine, but the diplomatic source said the U.S. “air force and special forces” are “in Ukraine” amid fears of a Russian invasion.
He didn’t say how many troops with U.S. embassy officials, only confirming that Washington sent nearly 200,000 pounds in “lethal aid” to Ukraine.
His comments came as the Pentagon said it ordered 8,500 troops on higher alert Monday to potentially deploy to Europe as part of a NATO military alliance “response force.”
And for the first time since the Cold War, a U.S. carrier battle group is heading to sea under NATO command.
CONSULTING ALLIES
U.S. President Joe Biden announced separately that he consulted with key European leaders Monday to underscore America’s solidarity with allies there.
At stake beyond the future of Ukraine is the credibility of the Western NATO military alliance.
The NATO, or North Atlantic Treaty Organization, is central to U.S. defense strategy, but Russian President Vladimir Putin views it as a threat to Russian security.
Both sides seem unwilling to compromise, said Kadri Liik, Senior Policy Fellow at the Wider Europe Program of the European Council on Foreign Relations think thank.
She cited “three baskets of demands that Russia has made,” including its demand for NATO to promise to stop enlargement. Secondly, Russia demands a “scale back military presence on the territory of post-1997 members” and thirdly that NATO “refrain from other military presence that could threaten Russia,” Liik noted.
However, “the U.S. is ready to discuss only the third component. It is hard to say if this will satisfy Moscow, or where the compromise could be found,” Liik stressed
MAJOR TEST
For the often visible frail Biden, the crisis is a significant test of his ability to forge a united stance against Putin, critics and analysts said.
There was little time Monday amid concerns that Putin was increasing pressure with Russian naval exercises reportedly slated worldwide, including in the Baltic region, Mediterranean, and even off the coast of Ireland.
Moscow has also spoken about a strategic partnership with Communist-run Cuba, including putting troops and missiles in Venezuela or Nicaragua.
That would bring Russian forces closer to the United States.
Putin has also demanded that NATO roll back forces from Eastern member states linked to the former Russian-led Soviet Union.
However, Putin has achieved the opposite with thousands of additional U.S. troops in Eastern Europe and Ukraine.
WITHDRAWING CITIZENS
Amid the standoff, several Western countries, including the U.S., Britain, and Australia, have told the families of its diplomats in Kyiv to leave Ukraine.
Germany said it would also help its citizens to go “if they wish” ahead of an anticipated Russian invasion.
There are some 127,000 Russian troops near Ukraine’s borders, but Moscow says it “has no intention” to invade Ukraine.
A U.S. diplomatic source told Worthy News there are Russian special forces in Ukraine preparing a “pretext for Russia” to invade as early as next month.
Russia already annexed Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula in 2014, which it regards strategic interest.
Moscow also supports pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine in a conflict that killed 14,000 people.
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