U.S. troops to arrive in Europe in January to reassure allies
The United States is deploying troops to Poland, the Baltic states and Romania next month as part of raising the security of the region, Polish and U.S. defense officials said Wednesday.
Polish Defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz made the announcement following talks with the commander of U.S. land troops in Europe, Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, in Zagan, western Poland. An Armored Brigade Combat Team from Fort Carson, Colo. will be deployed there early next month, while another U.S. force, a battalion, will be deployed April 1 to Orzysz, in the northeast.
Macierewicz said he was “very happy that a decision has been taken by the U.S. side for an earlier deployment.”
But the U.S. Army told The Associated Press that the deployment was not accelerated and is taking place as had always been scheduled.
Hodges said the troops will arrive in the German port of Bremerhaven on Jan. 6 and will be immediately deployed to Poland, the Baltic states and Romania. Their transfer will be timed and treated as a test of “how fast the force can move from port to field,” he said.
“I’m confident in the very powerful signal, the message it will send (that) the United States, along with the rest of NATO, is committed to deterrence,” Hodges said.
He said the armored brigade has already moved out of its Colorado base and is loading on ships.
“I’m excited about what my country is doing and I’m excited about continuing to work with our ally, Poland,” Hodges said.
In a separate decision, the members of NATO at a July summit in Warsaw approved the deployment of four multinational battalions to Poland and the Baltic states to deter Russia. Germany will lead a multinational battalion in Lithuania, with similar battalions to be led by the United States in Poland, Britain in Estonia and Canada in Latvia.
Poland and the Baltic nations have been uneasy about increased Russian military operations in the region, especially after Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, and have requested U.S. and NATO troops on their soil as a deterrent. The alliance and the U.S. insist the troop presence is not aimed against anyone, but Russia has threatened measures in response. AP
Flynn investigated by Army for wrongly sharing intelligence
The retired Army general chosen by Donald Trump to be national security adviser was investigated for inappropriately sharing classified information with foreign military officers while he was serving in Afghanistan.
That’s according to documents made public Dec. 14 by the Washington Post and obtained by The Associated Press.
An Army investigation concluded that while some intelligence was wrongly shared by Michael Flynn, a major general at the time, it was “not done knowingly.” No action was taken against Flynn.
The Post and others had previously reported about the investigation, which had been classified as secret.
The investigation found no evidence of misconduct or damage to national security. The documents do not detail what information he shared, or with whom. AP
Pakistan says it test-fired medium-range cruise missile
Pakistan’s military says it has successfully test-fired a revised version of a locally developed medium-range cruise missile, which can strike targets both on land and sea.
In a statement, it said the Babur Cruise Missile, which has a range of 700 kilometers (420 miles), was launched from an undisclosed location. It said the low-flying, terrain-hugging missile is capable of carrying various types of warheads.
The statement quoted Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, Gen. Zubair Mahmood Hayat, as congratulating the project’s scientists and engineers on “achieving yet another milestone of great value and significance.”
Pakistan became a nuclear power 1998, developing the capability to match that of neighbor and arch-rival India. AP
Czech military to purchase 8 radars made in Israel
The Czech Republic’s defense minister says the country’s military has decided to purchase Israeli-made radars for its military.
Martin Stropnicky says the army will pay 2.9 billion koruna ($114 million) for a total of eight ELM 2084 MMR radars made by the Israeli state-run IAI Elta company. The radars are used in the Israeli Iron Dome rocket defense system.
They will be delivered in 2019-2021 and will replace obsolete Soviet-made radars.
Stropnicky said Dec. 14 they will help guard the country’s airspace in the altitude from 100 meters to 3,000 meters (330 to 10,000 feet). AP