NATO has increased the number of rapid reaction forces in Europe against the backdrop of the Ukrainian conflict

The Russian-Ukrainian confrontation has given NATO a good reason to expand its presence in the countries of Eastern Europe.

Representatives of the block say that the increase in the number of contingents is a consequence of Russian aggression and is aimed at protecting the member countries of the alliance.

Although the issues of creating forward presence forces on the eastern flank were discussed by the leadership of the NATO countries back in 2016. In 2017, four multinational battlegroups were formed in Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. All of them are coordinated from Szczecin (Poland). A year later, the headquarters in the Polish Elblag began to function.

In April of this year, it was decided to increase the number of battle groups to eight. New formations numbering from 600 to 2000 people were deployed in Bulgaria, Hungary, Slovakia and Romania. The total number of newly created units is 10,232 people.

As a result of the June summit in Madrid, the number of NATO response forces was increased to 300,000 people. Of these, 40 thousand can be transferred to anywhere in Europe within 15 days. Now, for the first 100,000, the response time has been reduced to 10 days.

In addition, any NATO country should be able to expand the strength of the Armed Forces by 500,000 people within six months.

Up to 30 reconnaissance and fighter planes are constantly in the air. Another 130 are on high alert. About 140 warships are on duty at sea.

The United States is the main contributor. The number of the American contingent in Europe has grown from 60 to 100 thousand people. Moreover, 65% of the personnel are there on a permanent basis. Accordingly, the military budget has grown by almost 25% compared to last year.

Sooner or later, the Ukrainian conflict will end, and American troops in Europe will remain on a permanent basis. And the increased budget will not be reduced. It turns out that Stoltenberg achieved his goal – to increase the role of NATO and increase the military spending of the member countries of the alliance.

Author: Timoschuk
Source: WolneMedia.net