Joe Biden approves sending additional forces to eastern Europe
February 2, 2022, 5:11 pm

Joe Biden approves sending additional forces to eastern Europe

Joe Biden-US president-Shutterstock

The Swiss Info reported, two U.S. officials told Reuters on Wednesday, U.S. President Joe Biden has approved sending additional forces to eastern Europe, as Washington reinforces its allies against what it describes as a Russian threat to invade Ukraine.

One of the officials said about 2,000 American troops would deploy from the United States to Poland and Germany, while around 1,000 troops now based in Germany would head to Romania.

In signs that, publicly at least, Russia is in no mood to signal compromise, the Kremlin mocked British Prime Minister Boris Johnson as "utterly confused" and ridiculed British politicians for their "stupidity and ignorance".

Moscow, which has massed more than 100,000 troops near Ukraine's borders, denies any plan to invade its neighbour but says it could take unspecified military measures if demands are not met, including a promise by NATO never to admit Kyiv.

The Kremlin turned its rhetorical fire on Johnson, who cancelled a phone call with Putin on Monday to answer questions in parliament about boozy events in his Downing Street office during the COVID-19 lockdown. Johnson visited Kyiv on Tuesday, where he accused Russia of holding a gun to Ukraine's head.

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Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia had not announced any phone call with Johnson but added: "It makes sense to speak to anybody. Russia and President Putin are open to communicating with everyone. Even to someone who is utterly confused, he is prepared to provide exhaustive explanations."

Russia's foreign ministry went further, mocking Foreign Secretary Liz Truss for saying Britain was sending supplies to its "Baltic allies across the Black Sea" - two bodies of water that are on opposite sides of Europe.

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"Mrs Truss, your knowledge of history is nothing compared to your knowledge of geography," Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova wrote in a blog post. "If anyone needs saving from anything, it's the world, from the stupidity and ignorance of British politicians."

Source: swissinfo

Egyptian President seeking bilateral trade boost with Kuwait Vladimir Putin and Boris Johnson to discuss Ukraine by phone on Wednesday evening

Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.