NATO to put 4,000 troops in Poland and the Baltic countries

The North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) is set to place some 4,000 troops in Poland and the Baltic countries in an attempt to strengthen Europe's Eastern border, according to the international daily Wall Street Journal. "The U.S. is likely to provide two battalions, while Germany and Britain would likely provide a battalion each, according to Western officials. Russian officials have repeatedly said their own buildup and exercises are a response to NATO’s troop buildup and aggressive posture to Moscow," the newspaper says. NATO defense ministers in February approved in principle the deployment of an Eastern European troop presence, though diplomats said the new contribution numbers aren’t finalized. NATO’s military arm, the Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe, has sent the recommendations to the alliance headquarters in Brussels, where they are being reviewed. In recent weeks, Russian jets performed “aggressive flight manoeuvres” against a US warship cooperating with Polish personnel in the Baltic Sea, American naval officials stated.