Armed Forces
US Tanks To Be “Temporarily” Stationed In Mid-Eastern Europe
US Secretary of Defence, Ashton Carter, confirmed the plans regarding the deployment of the equipment for a brigade-sized combat group in the Baltic States, Poland, Romania and Bulgaria. In total, the deployed package is going to include 250 vehicles on a track chassis (M1A2 Abrams main battle tanks, Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, M109 Howitzers), along with the additional equipment.
During his visit in Estonia Carter stressed the fact that consent for deployment of the US Armed Forces hardware within the area was granted by Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Romania and Bulgaria. Carter claimed that the equipment for a US Army brigade is going to be scattered across these locations. US Secretarty of Defence emphasized the fact that one of the main goals of the operation, is to make rotational exercises in Europe easier.
Vehicles for one brigade-sized combat group are going to be stored within the territory of the European states - namely ca. 250 M1A2 Abrams tanks, Bradley infantry fighting vehicles and M109 howitzers, with a bundle of additional equipment. According to the agency’s reports, Carter noted that part of the hardware would remain in Germany, which is probably connected with the fact that the US Army is still willing to use its infrastructure located West of the Oder River.
The US equipment deployed in Mid-Eastern Europe is going to be used, above all, by the US Army brigades acting under jurisdiction of the US Army European command within a specific period of time. The decision related to expansion of the scope within which the US armament is deployed in Europe has been made in the light of the Ukrainian crisis. Earlier on it was planned that relevant hardware for a single battalion would remain in Germany, namely ca. 30 M1A2 Abrams tanks, and a similar number of the Bradley infantry fighting vehicles.