This spring sees NATO beginning a joint operation in Russia’s border states which was agreed at the end of President Obama’s administration. Eighty-Seven US tanks including M1 Abrams are being transported to the area, along with 144 armoured vehicles and 3,500 troops, making this the biggest American deployment in Europe since the end of the cold war.
They will participate in exercises with the Polish, including a simulated nuclear attack, in a bid to reassure America’s European allies that Washington is committed to their defence. Canadians will also be permanently stationed in Latvia from June and will lead a battalion of between 1,200 to 1,500 soldiers from Albania, Italy, Poland, Slovenia and Spain as part this NATO operation, dubbed ‘Enhanced Forward Presence.
