Britain Affirms Continued NATO Buildup in Eastern Europe

Fallon: Britain to Send 'Up to 700' Troops to Baltics

by Jason Ditz

Continued meetings by NATO defense ministers are fueling yet more comments from member nations about ongoing plans to throw more and more troops at Eastern Europe, particularly the Baltic States, nominally to “deter Russia.”

British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon is the latest talking about the plans, saying that Britain has committed to leading one of the battalions heading to the Baltics, and will commit “up to 700” ground troops to the operation “in the face of continued Russian aggression.”

The “Russian aggression” is based on NATO predictions of a Russian invasion of Eastern Europe over two years ago, and the “continued” part is that Russia never did launch the invasion, so NATO military officials keep predicting it to justify more military spending in the region.

Indications are that the British troops are headed to Estonia, while Germany’s troops will go in Lithuania. The US is seen planning to send its troops to Eastern Poland, and reports suggest that Canada could be the next NATO member with a battalion of its own.

http://news.antiwar.com/2016/06/14/britain-affirms-continued-nato-buildup-in-eastern-europe/