‘Frozen’ relations bring back Cold War
Russia-ukraine tension puts US troops on alert
The U.S. is putting 8,500 troops on high alert as Russia stacks soldiers along its border with Ukraine, sparking the largest challenge to European security since the Cold War, experts tell the Herald.
The Pentagon has placed these U.s.-based troops on heightened alert for potential deployment to Europe as the diplomatic situation “appears pretty frozen” between Russia and the West over concerns that Moscow is planning to invade Ukraine, said Chris Miller, assistant professor of International History at The Fletcher School at Tufts University.
“No one has a crystal ball, but I’m quite worried that this is going to end with military escalation,” said Miller, who’s also the co-director of the school’s Russia and Eurasia Program. “That would be disastrous for Russia and for Europe, and would be the largest war in Europe since 1945.
“This is the biggest challenge to European security since the Cold War,” he added.
His sense is that the Russian military is in place for a “pretty big operation” if President Vladimir Putin decides to go ahead with it.
“The fact that Russia has amassed so many troops along the western border has changed the security situation in Europe, making it less secure,” Miller said. “It necessitates some sort of U.S. response and NATO response.”
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby on Monday said no final decisions had been made on deployments, which he said would happen only if the NATO alliance decides to activate a rapid-response force “or if other situations develop” in connection with tensions over Russia’s military buildup along Ukraine’s borders.
“What this is about is reassurance to our NATO allies,” Kirby said.
He added that he could not rule out that U.S. troops already
based in Europe could be shifted east as further reinforcements.
It is “highly unlikely” that U.S. forces become involved in any sort of fighting, Miller said.
Russia has placed about 100,000 troops near Ukraine’s border, demanding that NATO promise it will never allow Ukraine to join. Any pledge to permanently bar Ukraine is a nonstarter for NATO — creating a deadlock that many fear can only end in war.
Russia denies it is planning an invasion, as Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said it was NATO and the U.S. who were behind the escalating tensions, not Russia.
President Biden on Monday held a video call with several European leaders on the Russian military buildup and potential responses to an invasion.
“I had a very, very, very good meeting — total unanimity with all the European leaders,” Biden told reporters.
Anna Vassilieva, the founder of the Monterey Initiative in Russian Studies at the Middlebury Institute and an expert on U. S.-russian relations, said the West needs to treat Russian security concerns seriously. She said the U.S., European nations and Russia must have a summit as soon as possible.
“I really hope the political will of Western leaders will prevail, and they’ll take the Russian security concerns seriously,” Vassilieva said.
“There are lives of people at stake,” she added. “It’s heart-wrenching.”