John R. Deni
At recent summits, pressing questions about the disparity between available forces and the Russian threat were largely avoided.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky pretty rude reaction News that his country would not receive a firm timetable for NATO membership drew attention at the alliance’s summit in Vilnius last week. Less noted, but arguably of more immediate importance, is the mismatch between allied forces in Eastern Europe and their strategies for countering the Russian threat.
Since Russia first invaded Ukraine in 2014, NATO has been fairly slow in adapting its force structure in Eastern Europe. In 2016, the Alliance began Strengthening its Forward Presence, a plan to deploy rotating battle groups to Eastern member states. Within a year, four multinational forces of about 1,200 troops each arrived in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland. After Russia’s second invasion of Ukraine last year, the alliance expanded the eFP, expanding existing forces to up to 1,900 troops and sending new troops to Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria and Romania.
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Photos from NATO and DVIDS – Images – Bull Battery M109A7 Paladin howitzer enters combat
