Overnight Defense & National Security — Pentagon deploying 3,000 troops to Europe

by Ellen Mitchell - 02/02/22 7:34 PM ET

It’s Wednesday, welcome to Overnight Defense & National Security, your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. Subscribe here: digital-stage.thehill.com/newsletter-signup.

The Pentagon is deploying and repositioning more than 3,000 troops to bolster Eastern European allies, the first such movement as the U.S. looks to bolster NATO’s capabilities in the region amid growing tensions between Russia and Ukraine.

We’ll share the details of those moves plus more on the political tensions over the U.S. response to Russia, the Army’s move to dismiss soldiers who refused the COVID-19 vaccine and the weapons the U.S. military is sending to the UAE.

For The Hill, I’m Ellen Mitchell. Write me with tips at emitchell@digital-stage.thehill.com.

Let’s get to it.

Troops sent to Eastern Europe amid tensions

Defense Department press secretary John Kirby told reporters on Wednesday that the agency will deploy 2,000 troops stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C. to Germany and Poland “in the next few days, while an additional 1,000 troops currently stationed in Germany will be repositioned to Romania.

A temporary fix: “I want to be very clear about something: These are not permanent moves,” Kirby said.

“They are moves designed to respond to the current security environment. Moreover, these forces are not going to fight in Ukraine. They are going to ensure the robust defense of our NATO allies,” he continued.

Some background: Russia has amassed upward of 100,000 troops near its border with Ukraine, and the Biden administration is now warning that a military incursion of Ukraine is imminent.

The Pentagon last month put 8,500 troops on high alert to deploy, largely to bolster NATO’s response force — a multinational force of about 40,000 troops that can deploy on short notice. Kirby said these troops have not been deployed and remain on high alert status.

President Biden said on Friday that he planned to send a small number of forces to Eastern Europe in the “near term,” adding that he’d send “not too many.”

Keeping out: However, the president has been clear that no U.S. forces will be deployed directly to Ukraine. Similarly, NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg said last month that no forces from the alliance will be deployed to Kyiv.

Where will they come from?: The forces being deployed to Germany and Poland are comprised of 1,700 forces from the from the 82nd Airborne Division and 300 forces 18th Airborne Corps, according to a fact sheet released from the Pentagon.

Meanwhile, the troops being repositioned to Romania from Germany are part of an Infantry Stryker squadron, which is designed to deploy in short order. Those forces will augment more than 900 U.S. service members already in rotation in Romania.

Read the full story here.

RUSSIA CRISIS EXACERBATES US POLITICAL DIVISIONS

The White House forcefully criticized a GOP senator on Wednesday for language it said parroted Russian talking points, as fault lines between President Biden and his staunchest GOP critics deepened on the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki ripped Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), who is widely seen as a possible presidential candidate, for suggesting in a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken that the U.S. drop support for Ukraine’s eventual admission into NATO.

Psaki suggested doing so amounted to appeasement of Russia, which has massed troops on Ukraine’s border, triggering an international crisis.

“If you are digesting Russian misinformation and parroting Russian talking points, you are not aligned with longstanding bipartisan American values,” she said during a White House briefing.

A divide: Psaki said her remark was also directed at “others who may be parroting the talking points of Russian propagandists.”

The White House did not name names, but Fox News host Tucker Carlson has been critical of Biden’s approach to the pending crisis, questioning why the U.S. is siding with Ukraine.

The episode was the latest instance of the Ukraine crisis exposing divisions within the United States over America’s posture overseas and decision making with respect to Russia’s ongoing threats to its neighbor.

Hawley is not the only conservative to criticize Biden, but the issue has also pulled back the curtain on divides within the GOP on foreign policy and defense.

Read the full story here

Army dismissing unvaccinated soldiers

A U.S. Marine receives the COVID-19 vaccine.

The Army announced on Wednesday that will begin dismissing soldiers who are not vaccinated against COVID-19.

Under a directive issued by Army Secretary Christine Wormuth, commanders will begin involuntary administrative dimissals for soldiers who have refused to be vaccinated and don’t have a pending or approved exemption request.

“Army readiness depends on Soldiers who are prepared to train, deploy, fight and win our nation’s wars,” Wormuth said in a statement. “Unvaccinated Soldiers present risk to the force and jeopardize readiness.”

Missed deadlines: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin mandated vaccinations for the military in late August but left it up to each service to implement its own deadlines.

The Army gave active-duty soldiers until Dec. 15 to comply with the mandate, but Reservists and Army National Guard members still have until June 30 to be fully vaccinated.

As of Wednesday, service had yet to involuntary dismiss any soldiers solely for refusing the vaccine.

Punishments so far: The Army has relieved six active-duty leaders — including two battalion commanders — for not complying with the mandate. It has also issued 3,073 written reprimands to soldiers who are not in compliance.

The numbers now: Ninety-seven percent of active-component Army troops are partially vaccinated, according to data released on Jan. 27, while 96 percent are fully inoculated. Additionally, 83 percent of reserve component forces are partially vaccinated, while 79 percent are fully vaccinated

The Army has approved six of the 709 requests for medical exemptions it received in its active component, and has approved none of the 2,910 requests for religious exemptions.

Read the full story here

US sending fighter jets, warships to help UAE

The United States is sending fighter jets and a guided missile destroyer to the United Arab Emirates to help the partner nation against recent missile attacks from Yemen’s Houthi rebels, according to the Pentagon.

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in a Tuesday call with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, said Washington is taking “a range of actions” to support the UAE, press secretary John Kirby said in a statement.

Those include sending the U.S. Navy’s USS Cole guided missile destroyer to partner with the UAE Navy before making a port call in Abu Dhabi, as well as 5th Generation Fighter aircraft “to assist the UAE against the current threat.”

Earlier attacks: The move comes after the Iran-backed Houthi rebels launched a series of missiles and drones at the UAE, including a failed attack aimed at a base hosting U.S. troops.

In the most recent attack on Monday, the UAE intercepted a missile during a visit by Israel’s president.

And a week prior, the U.S. military fired multiple Patriot missile interceptors at two missiles the Houthis claimed were fired at the al-Dhafra air base, where American forces are based.

More options on the table: “We take our defense relationship very seriously with the Emirates. We recognize the threats that they are under in a very real way,” Kirby told reporters on Wednesday when about the new U.S. weapon commitment to the Gulf nation. “These are two tangible ways in which we believe we can help the Emirates deal with these very serious threats.”

Kirby added that the U.S. will not rule out “additional steps” to help the UAE.

Read more here.

ON TAP TOMORROW

U.S. Central Command head Marine Corps Gen. Frank McKenzie will give the keynote address at the Middle East Institute’s virtual MEI-CENTCOM conference at 9 a.m.
The Atlantic Council will host a virtual discussion on “Russia-Ukraine conflict and implications to Turkey,” at 9 a.m.
The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe will hold a hearing on “Poland’s Leadership of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe in a Time of Crisis,” with Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), and Polish Foreign Minister Zbigniew Rau, at 10 a.m.
The German Marshall Fund of the United States will host a virtual discussion on “Ideas and Priorities for NATO’s Future – Presenting the NATO Shadow Strategic Concept,” with former NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow, at 10 a.m.
A House Veterans’ Affairs subcommittee will hold a hearing on “Supporting Vet Centers in Meeting the Needs of Veterans and Military Personnel,” at 10 a.m.
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), will speak at a Washington Post Live virtual discussion on “the dual threats from Russia and China and the importance of strengthening NATO,” at 12 p.m.
Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies will host a virtual discussion on “Turkey, Russia and the Struggle for Power in the Middle East and North Africa,” at 12:30 p.m.
Hudson Institute will hold a virtual talk on “How the United States Can Help Defend Ukraine,” with former U.S. Army Europe Commander Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, at 2 p.m.
The Institute of World Politics will host a virtual discussion on “U.S. Diplomacy as a Force for Good,” with former Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs David Hale, at 5 p.m.
The Meridian International Center will host “A Conversation With Her Excellency Adela Raz, Ambassador of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan,” at 6 p.m.