FORT HOOD, Texas — Monday, Fort Hood officials announced that soldiers have been deployed to NATO’s eastern areas.
Officials said roughly 160 soldiers from the III Armored Corps were deployed as part of the 7,000 U.S. military personnel chosen to support the NATO Response Force as stated in President Joe Biden’s address on Feb. 24.
Officials said the soldiers will supplement U.S. forces in the European theater and are trained and quipped for various missions to reinforce the U.S. European Command posture on NATO’s eastern flank.
“Our soldiers are trained and ready,” Col. Matthew Ruedi of the 13th ESC deputy commanding officer said. “Elements of our heavy transportation company have deployed to Europe to reassure NATO allies, deter Russian aggression, and are prepared to support a range of other operations in the region.”
Ruedi also said soldiers’ families were notified and kept in the loop during the deployment process.
“It’s not just our soldiers that we ensure are ready for this mission, but we do everything we can to make sure families are ready, too,” Ruedi said. “Things can change rapidly in situations like this. Making sure we communicate with our families only helps manage expectations, but it also contributes to our overall readiness.”
Last month, Biden announced U.S. troops will not engage in direct conflict in Ukraine.
Twelve days into the invasion, Russian troops have continued to make significant advances in southern Ukraine but stalled in some other regions. Monday, a top official said multiple countries were discussing whether to provide the warplanes that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been pleading for.
A third round of peace talks between Russia and Ukraine also ended Monday, with a top Ukrainian official saying there had been minor progress in creating safe corridors that would allow civilians to escape the fighting. Yet, Russia’s chief negotiator said he expects those corridors to start opening Tuesday.
