U.S. President Biden weighs deployment of American military forces to Eastern Europe

U.S. President Biden weighs deployment of American military forces to Eastern Europe

Biden expects the Pentagon to announce on Wednesday morning that troops will be deployed "in the coming days," U.S. officials told CNN.

The deployment is proof of support for NATO allies who feel threatened by Russian military moves near Ukraine, officials said.

The Pentagon is expected to announce that thousands of additional US troops will be deployed to outposts in Europe. The deployment will involve approximately 2.000 U.S. troops in Poland and several thousand more troops deployed to southeastern NATO countries, including Romania, sources said.

The United States has put 8.500 troops in the United States on high alert in the event that a NATO Response Force is called in and a U.S. force is needed quickly. But the United States and NATO have tens of thousands of other troops already in Europe that they can use for any additional deployment to Eastern European allies; some of the troops that will be deployed soon are already stationed in Europe, sources said, while others will come from those in the United States that are already on high alert.

The troops will act on a bilateral basis with their host countries, as NATO has not yet activated a multinational response force.