US President Joe Biden.
Highlights
- America is sending 2 extra fleets of F-35 fighter jets to Britain.
- Joe Biden meets with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
- There are currently more than one lakh US soldiers stationed in Europe.
Madrid: US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that the US is increasing its forces in Europe to bolster regional security following Russia’s attack on Ukraine. Biden, meeting with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the inauguration of the Annual Conference of Leaders of NATO Member States in Madrid, said, “NATO is strong and united and we are taking steps at this conference and further enhancing our collective strength.” .’
‘Permanent headquarters to be established in Poland’
Biden said the US is setting up a permanent headquarters in Poland and is also sending two additional fleets of F-35 fighters to Britain. Biden said the US would also send more air defense and other capability systems to Germany and Italy. “Today I am announcing that the United States will increase its force presence in Europe and act proactively in the changing security landscape and strengthen our collective security,” he said.
‘Strengthening US-NATO interaction’
“We are going to establish a permanent headquarters in Poland, the US Fifth Military Corps, and strengthen US-NATO interactions throughout the eastern region,” Biden said. Biden announced a day earlier that the US would deploy two additional destroyers at its naval center in Rota, Spain. At present, more than one lakh US soldiers are stationed in Europe. That number has risen by nearly 20,000 from before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began four months ago.
