US puts 8,500 troops on alert to back NATO forces; Russia concerned

Kremlin accuses Washington of fuelling tensions, calls it Western 'hysteria'

The US is putting as many as 8,500 troops on heightened alert for deployment to bolster NATO forces in Eastern Europe if needed as Russian troops mass on Ukraine’s borders, according to the Defense Department.

“It’s very clear that the Russians have no intention right now of de-escalating,” so it makes “prudent sense” to give U.S. military personnel time to prepare if NATO activates its Response Force along the alliance’s eastern flank, Defense Department spokesman John Kirby told reporters Monday at the Pentagon. 

Meanwhile, Russia said on Tuesday it was watching with great concern after the United States put 8,500 troops on alert to be ready to deploy to Europe in case of an escalation in the Ukraine crisis.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused Washington of fuelling tensions over Ukraine - repeating Moscow's line that the crisis is being driven by U.S. and NATO actions rather than by its own build-up of tens of thousands of troops near the Ukrainian border.

Western states accuse Russia of planning a new attack on Ukraine, which it invaded in 2014. Moscow denies any such plan but says it could take unspecified military action unless demands are met, including a NATO promise never to admit Kyiv.

NATO said on Monday it was putting forces on standby and reinforcing eastern Europe with more ships and fighter jets.

Kirby repeatedly said the troops aren’t being deployed yet and wouldn’t be sent into Ukraine. He said “there is time and space” for diplomacy but that Russia continues to increase the forces arrayed along its border with Ukraine—which top 100,000—and in Belarus.

The readiness alert indicates that President Joe Biden, who conferred with his national security advisers over the weekend, wants to send a stronger military message to Russian President Vladimir Putin even though his administration has repeatedly said the U.S. would respond to an invasion with stringent economic sanctions rather than by sending troops into Ukraine. Russia has denied it intends to invade.

State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters Monday that the readiness alert “is about defense and deterrence.” He said the Russians may well complain” about these efforts, but “it is their aggression that has precipitated” the crisis.

On Sunday, the State Department ordered family members of diplomats at its embassy in Kyiv to leave “due to the continued threat of Russian military action.” 

Won’t hesitate to toughen sanctions on Russia: UK PM 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Tuesday the government would soon set out more details on possible future sanctions for Russia in response to its aggression towards Ukraine. “We in the UK will not hesitate to toughen our national sanctions against Russia in response to whatever President Putin may do and the House (of Commons) will soon hear more on this," Johnson told parliament.

Johnson also said Britain would look to contribute to any new NATO deployments if Russia were to invade Ukraine. Meanwhile, Foreign minister Liz Truss said in parliament on Tuesday that British troops are unlikely to be deployed in combat roles in Ukraine.

‘Russia, Ukraine conflict will keep inflation up’

An escalated conflict between Russia and Ukraine would likely further increase energy costs for many countries, keeping headline inflation rates elevated for longer, the No. 2 official at the International Monetary Fund said. First Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath said that rising interest rates in the United States would likely result in corrections in markets.