NATO Nations in Eastern Europe welcome U.S. presence and partnering and that effort–to head off conflict before it starts–could lead to the expansion of Operation Atlantic Resolve, the NATO commitment to collective security for its member states, and promoting peace and stability in Europe in light of Russian action in Ukraine.
“By the end of summer you could very well see an operation that stretches from the Baltics all the way down to the Black Sea,” said Col. Michael Foster, brigade commander, 173rd IBCT (Airborne), at the Center for Strategic and International Studies Monday.
The big picture is to make sure partner nations understand the United States will be there for them, that their requests for training and cooperative exercises are honored, Foster said.
U.S. European Command is considering the potential to expand Operation Atlantic Resolve further to the South, he said. Poland and the Baltic states would comprise Atlantic Resolve North, while Atlantic Resolve South could comprise nations such as Romania and Bulgaria, and reach out to Hungary, Georgia and the Czech Republic at some point, he said.
As part of the fiscal year 2015 defense budget about $1 billion goes to the Defense Department’s European Reassurance Initiative. This will continue funding exercises and training and providing U.S. presence on the ground to help promote peace and stability in Europe.
Photo: U.S. Army
Separately this week, the 173rd deploys less than a full battalion to Ukraine to provide small unit training–as Ukraine requested for their national guard elements, Foster said. The work will be on honing small unit skills, individual, leader and collective training at company level and below.
While the initial effort is for six months, there are discussions on perhaps increasing the “duration and scope” of the work.
The units will be matched. Six U.S. companies will train six Ukrainian companies, and three U.S. battalion headquarters will train three Ukrainian battalion headquarters.
The 173rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), with units in Vicenza, Italy, and Grafenwoehr, Germany, deployed to Poland and the Baltic states as part of Atlantic Resolve. The mission was agreed by NATO members at its summit in June 2014.
Foster said what he’s seen in Atlantic Resolve is a very unique non-kinetic national power that is paying dividends before any conflict arises.
Responding to what he thinks about the success of such work from discussion moderator Maren Leed, senior adviser, CSIS Harold Brown Chair in Defense Policy Studies, Foster said he senses a desire to continue such work, to carve out more long-range definitive plans for cooperative training and exercises.