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Post by DavidH on Mar 20, 2017 15:44:45 GMT
The U.S. Army is sending more troops, tanks and helicopters to deter RussiaThe Army has beefed up its Europe mission, sending back tanks, helicopters and logistical support and putting on dozens of joint exercises throughout the year from Estonia down to Bulgaria — roughly the length of the entire east coast of the U.S. — to keep soldiers trained and demonstrate what NATO can do if it’s backed into a corner. As the armored brigades gets situated, another element has arrived: air power. The 10th Combat Aviation Brigade touched down in late February as part of the first of a rotation of aviation brigades, giving USAREUR the air support element it needs to complement its new armored presence In total, 2,200 soldiers, 86 helicopters and more than 700 pieces of equipment will go to Germany, Latvia and Romania. And later this month, a combat sustainment support battalion — with a mix of active, reserve and National Guard soldiers — will arrive to run the logistics for the two rotational brigades. As a whole, the rotational units will bolster the 30,000-strong Army force permanently stationed in Europe — 4,000 soldiers from the armored BCT, 2,200 from the aviation brigade and about 900 from the combat sustainment support battalion, according to a USAREUR spokesman. The Army is also working on pre-positioning of equipment. “All of the equipment for an armored division will be on the ground here in the next few years,” Hodges said. “A fires brigade, another armored brigade, sustainment brigade, division headquarters equipment — that’s all being established here.” Full- www.armytimes.com/articles/back-to-europe-the-army-is-sending-more-troops-tanks-and-helicopters-to-deter-russia
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Post by DavidH on Mar 20, 2017 15:45:59 GMT
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Post by DavidH on Mar 20, 2017 23:38:50 GMT
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 10:57:03 GMT
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 11:03:56 GMT
New U.S.-led force to deter Russia in Poland from AprilA U.S.-led battalion of more than 1,100 soldiers will be deployed in Poland from the start of April, a U.S. commander said on Monday, as the alliance sets up a new force in response to Moscow's 2014 annexation of Crimea. More than 900 U.S. soldiers, around 150 British personnel and some 120 Romanian troops will make up the battlegroup in northeastern Poland, one of four multinational formations across the Baltic region that Russia has condemned as an aggressive strategy on its frontiers. "This is a mission, not a cycle of training events," U.S. Army Lt. Colonel Steven Gventer, who heads the battlegroup, told a news conference. "The purpose is to deter aggression in the Baltics and in Poland ... We are fully ready to be lethal." www.reuters.com/article/us-nato-russia-idUSKBN16R1FV
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 11:36:55 GMT
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 12:15:21 GMT
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 12:25:08 GMT
Lukashenka: Armed groups trained in Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania up to provocations in BelarusArmed militants who were trained and instructed in Belarus, Poland, Ukraine and Lithuania have been detained in Belarus, the presidential press service reports with reference to Alyaksandr Lukashenka. ” They have not only been on the lookout for the proper moment. We have already detained several dozen [persons] who were trained how to deal with weapons in [special] camps. By the way, one of the camps was located not far from [the Belarusian towns of] Babruysk and Asipovichy. The other camps were in Ukraine and, if I am not mistaken, somewhere in Lithuania and Poland. The funds [for them] were sent through Poland and Lithuania to us [Belarus]. We have just detained a few dozen militants who were up to an armed provocation,” he states. “Thank God that real Belarusians let us know about it when visiting the European Union. A woman came to our embassy and warned us in an official letter that a provocation was being mounted. And we began to deal with the situation. Indeed, very interesting things have come to light,” Lukashenka stressed. On Monday, president Alyaksandr Lukashenka said that Belarusian opposition activists were trying to destabilize the situation in Belarus with the help of the West. belsat.eu/en/news/lukashenka-armed-groups-trained-in-ukraine-poland-lithuania-up-to-provocations-in-belarus/
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 12:40:32 GMT
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 14:27:57 GMT
Canadian military works to iron out challenges ahead of Latvia deploymentCanada will deploy 450 soldiers, including a headquarters team and a company of infantry soldiers driving the army's new (light armoured vehicle) LAV 6 fighting vehicle, a larger more powerful version of the troop carrier used in Afghanistan. They will be joined by: A troop of tanks from Poland. Two companies of mechanized soldiers travelling in armoured vehicles — one each from Spain and Italy. Soldiers from Slovenia, Albania and Latvia. www.cbc.ca/beta/news/politics/canada-latvia-deployment-1.4033193
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 15:36:20 GMT
Belarus president has no intention to abolish or suspend ‘parasite’ lawDecree Nr 3 has not been abolished or suspended, Belarusian president Alyaksandr Lukashenka said when visiting Mahiliou-based Kronospan company workers on Tuesday. “No matter how unpopular the decree is, I have neither abolished nor suspended it. The decree stays in force. The only thing I asked for was to put tax collection on hold for the people included in the relevant lists. Some of them were put on these lists unfairly. We will review all the lists. The deadline is 1 October,” state-run news agency BelTA quotes Lukashenka. On March 9, the Belarusian leader announced that the law on idlers would stay in force, but tax collection would be postponed for a year. belsat.eu/en/news/belarus-president-has-no-intention-to-abolish-or-suspend-parasite-law/
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 16:43:35 GMT
Swedish parliament holds its first war drill in two decadesA delegation of 50 lawmakers – which would have the power to replace parliament in the event of the threat of war or an outright conflict – held the drill on Monday at an unknown location, said speaker Urban Ahlin, declining to give details on what the manoeuvre involved. "These are secret scenarios… you were exposed to pressure," Ahlin told AFP on Tuesday. "It went really well." The delegation is made up of politicians from the left-wing, right-wing and far-right parties. A non-Nato member, Sweden has not seen armed conflict on its territory in two centuries. The drill has been planned since 2014, but Ahlin said an increasingly hostile situation in the world and in the region also prompted the exercise. www.thelocal.se/20170321/swedish-parliament-holds-its-first-war-drill-in-two-decades
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 18:25:15 GMT
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 19:51:14 GMT
Since the beginning of the year, at least 7 civilians have died in queues at the CP's - UNSince the beginning of the year, at least 7 civilians have died on the check points on the line of demarcation in the Donbass. This is reported in the report of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OASA). "Since the beginning of the year, at least seven civilians have died due to worsening health conditions while waiting on the CPs" the report said. novosti.dn.ua/news/268191-s-nachala-goda-mynymum-7-grazhdanskykh-umerly-v-ocheredyakh-na-kpvv-oon
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Post by DavidH on Mar 21, 2017 19:56:56 GMT
Video captured from Drona during the fighting near Avdeevki
Volunteers released video taken from the drone in February this year during fierce fighting near Avdeevka.
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