By M. Bilal Kenasari
WASHINGTO
Heavy U.S. equipment arrived Monday in Latvia and will be followed by U.S. soldiers who will be deployed to the Baltics next week, according to the Pentagon.
Spokesman Army Col. Steve Warren said 750 military tanks, helicopters, and other heavy equipment arrived in capital or Riga.
Approximately 3,000 soldiers of the 3rd Infantry Division brigade combat team will travel to Eastern Europe starting next week, as part of three months of training missions with NATO partners in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have been NATO members since 2004.
Warren said the soldiers will be replace U.S. Army-Europe's 2nd Cavalry Regiment.
The deployment comes as a result of the rise of tensions between Ukraine and Russia in eastern Europe, and as neighboring countries grow increasingly concerned about Russia’s aggression in the region.
Russian officials view the arrival of U.S. troops in the region as a “provocation,” and said it may cause serious consequences for “Kiev authorities and the Ukrainian people.”
Following a cease-fire agreement last month between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists, the U.S. released a series of images that showed Russian heavy equipment inside the Ukraine border, although the agreement stipulated the withdrawal of heavy weaponry from combat areas.
More than 6,000 people have lost their lives in the conflict between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian separatists since April 2014, according to the UN.
www.aa.com.tr/en
