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Pentagon Announces 3,000 Troops Deploying to Eastern Europe; Pentagon's John Kirby Addresses Press in Briefing Regarding U.S. Troop Deployment; U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson Focuses on Ukraine, Dodges Partygate Questions. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired February 02, 2022 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:00]
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Abu Dhabi, this is CONNECT THE WORLD with Becky Anderson.
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST (voice-over): Hello and welcome to the show. We're waiting to hear from the U.S. Pentagon after President Joe Biden
approved more troop deployments to Eastern Europe.
U.S. officials tell us thousands of forces could leave within days. This, of course, comes amid the Russian buildup near Ukraine.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON (voice-over): These are the newest satellite images of Russia's activity. Analysts say significant deployments have been seen in Belarus
and tents are being put up in Crimea.
And another look at the region, the red dots, the latest units to move in. You can see some of those units in Belarus appear very close to the
Ukrainian border.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: There is a lot to unpack here as we await that announcement by the Pentagon. And we are monitoring the rumor where we will get more from
John Kirby, the Pentagon spokesman. We're joined by U.S. retired Air Force Col. Cedric Leighton and we have Nic Robertson in Moscow as well as
Clarissa Ward in Eastern Ukraine, where people are hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.
Colonel, let's start with you. We know about this new troop deployment.
What does it mean?
What does this announcement mean at this point?
Hold that thought -- let's go to the Pentagon.
ADM. JOHN KIRBY (RET.), PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY: I think, as you heard Secretary Austin address just last Friday in his remarks with the chairman
here in the Briefing Room, we remain focused on the evolving situation in Europe and Russia's actions on the Ukrainian border and in Belarus.
As the secretary said, the United States stands shoulder to shoulder with our NATO allies. The current situation demands that we reinforce the
deterrent and defensive posture on NATO's eastern flank.
President Biden has been clear that the United States will respond to the growing threat to Europe's security and stability. Our commitment to NATO,
Article 5, and collective defense remains ironclad.
As part of this commitment and to be prepared for a range of contingencies, the United States will soon move additional forces to Romania, Poland and
Germany.
I want to be very clear about something: these are not permanent moves. 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.
Now let me lay this out for you in a series of three steps. First, 1,000 soldiers that are currently based in Germany will reposition to Romania in
the coming days. This is a striker squadron, a mounted cavalry unit, that's designed to deploy in short order and to move quickly, once in place.
And they will augment the sum of 900 U.S. forces that are currently in Romania. This force is designed to deter aggression and enhance our
defensive capabilities in front-line allied states. We expect them, as I said, to move in coming days.
Secretary Austin discussed this repositioning to Romania just last week in his conversation with the Romanian minister of defense.
And again, I want to stress that this move is coming at the express invitation of the Romanian government.
Additionally, we welcome French President Macron's announcement that France intends to deploy forces to Romania under NATO command, which Secretary
Austin discussed with the French defense minister Florence Parly just last week.
The United States will continue to consult and coordinate with France and all our allies to ensure that we complement each other in our respective
deployments. And of course, we're going to continue to work through NATO to make appropriate defensive and non-escalatory force posture alignments.
Second, we are moving an additional force of about approximately 2,000 troops from the United States to Europe in the next few days. The 82nd
Airborne Division is deploying components of an infantry brigade, combat team and key enablers to Poland.
[10:05:00]
KIRBY: And the 18th Airborne Corps is moving a joint task force capable headquarters to Germany. Both of them, as you know, are based in Fort
Bragg, North Carolina.
Collectively, this force is trained and equipped for a variety of missions to deter aggression and to reassure and to defend our allies. Not
surprisingly, we worked closely with our Polish and German allies to set the stage for these movements and we absolutely appreciate their support.
Again, these are not permanent moves; they respond to current conditions. We will adjust our posture as those conditions evolve.
Third and finally, all of these forces are separate and in addition to the 8,500 personnel in the United States on heightened alert posture that I
announced last week. Those 8,500 are not currently being deployed but remain ready to move if called for the NATO response force or as needed for
other contingencies, as directed by the secretary or by President Biden.
We continue to review our force posture in the situation in Europe and we will make adjustments as the situation warrants.
I also want to take this opportunity to correct some misconceptions around last week's announcement. NATO as an organization does not have veto power
over U.S. troop deployments and media reports to the contrary represent a mischaracterization of that.
Nothing precludes the United States from making its own decisions on force movements, including those forces that are being placed on heightened
readiness. That said, any movement of U.S. forces involves consultation with the host nation, as we have done with Romania and Poland and Germany
prior to today's announcements.
And we're mindful of the competing needs of operational security and our obligation to be transparent. And we'll provide you additional information
on these and other movements as available and as appropriate.
As we have long said, we are continuously reviewing our posture, so there may soon be additional postures and positions to announce, including
movements that are part of ongoing military exercises.
This is not the sum total of the deterrence actions we will take or those to reassure our allies. I think it won't surprise you, we take a
theaterwide approach to deterrence and defense and we welcome the additional announcements by Spain, Denmark, the U.K. and the Netherlands of
their consideration to deploy additional forces to reinforce NATO's eastern flank.
The United States has robust capabilities distributed across Europe, including in the Baltic region. And we will continue to assess needs in
that area in cooperation with relevant allies and, of course, the full NATO alliance. We stand united.
We have said that repeatedly. We say it again today. These movements are unmistakable signals to the world that we stand ready to reassure our NATO
allies and deter and defend against any aggression.
Now as the secretary said Friday, we do not know if Russia has made a final decision to further invade Ukraine. But it clearly has that capability. The
Department of Defense will continue to support diplomatic efforts led by the White House and the State Department to press for resolution. We do not
believe conflict is inevitable.
The United States, in lockstep with our allies and partners, has offered Russia a path to deescalate. But we will take all prudent measures to
ensure our own security and that of our allies.
Finally one note, I note that, in the past few hours, a proposal made by the United States leaked to a European news outlet. We did not make this
document public. But now that it is, it confirms to the entire world what we have always been saying: there is no daylight between our public
statements and our private discussions.
NATO and its partners are unified in their resolve and open to constructive and serious diplomacy. The United States has gone the extra mile to find a
diplomatic solution.
And if Russia actually wants to negotiate a solution, as it claims it does, this document certainly makes clear that there is a path forward to do so.
With that, we'll take questions, starting with you, Lita.
QUESTION: John, thanks. A couple details on this.
Is it still 8,500 total that are prepared to deploy or are there additional ones?
And there is a brigade at Fort Carson that already is scheduled to rotate into Europe.
Are you including them?
There's been some confusion.
Are you including that Carson brigade in the prepare to deploy orders?
Or are they completely separate because they're an already scheduled deployment?
[10:10:00]
QUESTION: And then, one other -- are there more -- of these troops that are going, are they under NATO or are these all unilateral U.S. moves?
Thank you.
KIRBY: Let me see if I can remember all those. The troops I'm talking about today will be going under U.S. Command. But as I said in the case of
Romania, we know the French are going to be preparing to deploy troops there. We will find ways to complement that force presence, again, in full
consultation with Romania.
So I wouldn't describe these as unilateral moves. I mean, this is a bilateral arrangement between the United States and Romania.
But to your question, they will be going under U.S. Command. The 8,500, they still remain on prepare to deploy orders, as I said when I talked
about it last Monday. The vast majority of them are designed for the NATO response force, as I said in my opening statement, that that force has not
been activated. So they aren't going anywhere.
The secretary has, as you might imagine, as we have worked toward these troop movements, there have been additional forces put on prepare to deploy
orders or shortened tethers.
I'm not prepared to go into great detail today about that. But yes, there have been additional ones. And as I said in my opening statement, you can
expect that could continue to happen going forward. We're going to constantly look at the conditions in the region and consult with allies and
partners.
And if we feel we need to make additional forces more ready, we'll do that. If we feel that we need to send more forces to certain eastern flank
countries, we'll do that, too, in full consultation with NATO and in full consultation with the specific allies and partners.
And I think I missed one of your questions, Lita.
QUESTION: Well, I just want to --
(CROSSTALK)
KIRBY: I'm going to have to take that one, Lita, because I don't have the breakdown of every single unit in that original 8,500 in front of me. So
let me just take that rather than speculate and guess -- Jen.
QUESTION: John, do you have any evidence that Putin plans to move beyond Ukraine's borders?
Why are you bolstering these eastern flank allies if you do not have evidence of that?
KIRBY: Because it's important that we send a strong signal to Mr. Putin and, frankly, to the world that NATO matters to the United States. It
matters to our allies. And we have ironclad Article 5 commitments. An attack on one is an attack on all.
And so we know that he also bristles at NATO, about NATO. And he's made no secret of that. We are making it clear that we're going to prepared to
defend our NATO allies if it comes to that.
Hopefully it won't come to that. Nobody wants to see -- as I said, conflict is not inevitable.
There is no reason for there to be armed conflict in Ukraine or anywhere else in the Europe continent and Mr. Putin can go a long way to serving
that end by taking seriously the proposals we have put forward diplomatically and by deescalating through moving some of those troops
away.
QUESTION: But is there any evidence that he plans to, that anything you're seeing that suggests those troops that are outside Ukraine might carry on
to Poland, Romania?
KIRBY: What we see, Jen, is clear evidence every day that he continues to destabilize the environment by adding more forces into the western part of
his country and along Belarus in addition to additional naval activity in the Mediterranean and the North Atlantic.
So he's clearly providing himself many options, lots more capabilities for exactly what purpose we don't know right now. And because we don't know
exactly what his purpose is, we want to make sure we're ready on the NATO front to defend our allies. Barbara.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: I want to fellow up on Jen's question. You said at the beginning, the current situation demands we
reinforce.
So what specifically demands the reinforcement that you are laying out today?
And the reason I ask this, this is bilateral, as you said. Originally you spoke at length several days ago about the NATO response force. They have
not activated that. You are moving ahead bilaterally not under a NATO umbrella anyhow.
So what signal does that send, that you're not waiting for a NATO vote?
And what is the current situation that demands this reinforcement outside of Russia and Ukraine?
I don't think I heard a specific answer.
KIRBY: I think the signal that it sends, that we're moving additional U.S. forces into ally territory --
[10:15:00]
KIRBY: -- at the request and with the invitation of those countries is that we take our NATO commitments very, very seriously. And I put that
right in the opening statement. And as for -- I think your question is, why now.
STARR: Why are you doing -- I don't understand. I don't -- I'd like an explanation, why you're doing this now without the vote at NATO, which does
not appear readily apparent for them to activate the response force.
What has led you to say, OK, the United States will act on a bilateral basis?
You have the invitations. You could have waited for a NATO vote. You decided not to.
So what is --
(CROSSTALK)
KIRBY: It's not just us, Barb; other nations -- as I mentioned Denmark, the U.K., France. Other NATO nations are likewise discussing in bilateral
ways with Eastern flank nations the addition of forces and capabilities to those nations.
So it's not just the United States. It's other NATO allies that are doing this. And you talk about this vote thing. Let's be clear. What I think
you're getting at is the NATO response force. That's a 40,000-person strong force that is designed for high readiness and that is a decision that the
alliance and only the alliance can make.
We have a contribution to that. We have gotten those forces alerted, to be ready to go if needed. And they still will be. We also can, if the
president decides, as commander in chief, to take some of those alerted forces and move them in a bilateral arrangement as well. He can do that.
As I said at the top, it's not like the alliance has a veto authority on any of those troops that were put on prepare to deploy.
But in terms of why now, here's just a couple of factors. Mr. Putin continues to add forces, combined arms, offensive capabilities, even over
just the last 24 hours. He continues to add in western Russia and in Belarus and in the Mediterranean and the North Atlantic.
He has shown no signs of being interested or willing to deescalate the tensions. And it's not just the United States that has noticed this; our
NATO allies have noticed this. And we have been in constant communication and consultation with them. And they have expressed their concerns.
We have shared our perspectives on what we're seeing with them, they have shared their perspectives on what they're seeing with us. And as a result
of these bilateral discussions, we are now prepared to make these moves.
I say, again, two things. These are temporary moves, not permanent deployments, not permanent basing and, two, we're not ruling out the
possibility that there will be more coming up in future days and weeks.
STARR: So my last question, the bottom line here is you cannot, the United States, the Pentagon and the White House, you right now could not rule out
the possibility that Putin could make a move outside of Ukraine into an East European country that's friendly with -- NATO friendly with the U.S.
and allies.
You can't rule out that he's going to make an additional move beyond Ukraine.
KIRBY: We're not ruling anything in or out with this announcement, Barb. This isn't about -- I don't -- this isn't about an intel assessment about
what Mr. Putin will or won't do.
As I said again, in my opening statement, we still don't believe he's made a decision to further invade Ukraine. And if he does further invade
Ukraine, obviously, there is going to be consequences for that.
But he has many options and capabilities available to him as to how he might do that. And we simply don't know. We want to make sure that he knows
any move on NATO is going to be resisted and going to trigger Article 5 and we're going to be committed to the defense of our allies. And that's what
this is all about. Yes, David?
QUESTION: When President Biden previewed this last week and he said he would be sending forces in the near term, he also said "not a lot."
Do you consider 3,000 not a lot and how does 1,000 troops, infantry troops, stop the kind of force that you've been describing that Russia has been
amassing in Western Russia and Belarus?
KIRBY: We think that these orders that the secretary is giving today are very much in keeping with the president's comments.
And to your other question, I remind again that we hold the option open of additional force movements if that's desired and needed. So the steps I'm
talking about today can very well be preliminary steps to future ones we might take.
And to your other question about, you know, is that enough?
[10:20:00]
KIRBY: Again, I will remind you that Romania, as a solid state, has their own military and a very capable one at that. And it's not just the United
States sending a striker squadron. As I mentioned earlier, the French are going to be sending additional troops. I'll let them speak to what they're
going to do and on what timeline and how much.
And as I also said in my opening statement, other countries are likewise moving forward to provide bolstering capabilities to NATO allies on the
eastern flank.
QUESTION: How long will it take these troops to get in position?
And do you expect the infantry combat team from Fort Bragg to jump in?
KIRBY: I'm not going to talk about the specifics of their movement. But as I said in my opening statement, we expect them to start moving in coming
days. I don't have a more specific timeline for you in terms of exact departure date and exact arrival.
Obviously, it will be obvious when they get there. And certainly we will try to keep you informed all the way. Court.
QUESTION: I just want to say you've made it clear several times that these troops won't be brought into Ukraine and they won't be in combat.
But can you rule out that any of these troops, specifically some from the 82nd Airborne might be brought into Ukraine in the coming days to help with
the non-combatant evacuation?
Is that possible that they could be used for that?
KIRBY: As I think you heard the secretary say on Friday, our troops are multimission capable. And they will be prepared for a range of
contingencies. And I won't go any further than that.
QUESTION: Is that one reason the 82nd specifically was identified as one of the units to go forward early, is that because of that capability?
Because --
(CROSSTALK)
KIRBY: They are, as you know already, a ready force. They are already at a heightened state of alert. That's the raison d'etre for that force and they
are multimission capable. They can do a lot of things.
It's a very versatile force and I think their versatility, their ability to move quickly and to conduct a range of missions across a range of
contingencies, which is well proven, that's the reason why the secretary has ordered them to go.
OK. I promise I'll get to everybody. But I haven't done anybody on the phone. And I need to do that.
QUESTION: So thank you. I would like to know how many soldiers you're going to send to Poland because you said 2,000 from the U.S. to Germany and
Poland.
So how many soldiers will you have in Poland all in all?
KIRBY: Majority of the 2,000 that will be moving from Fort Bragg will be going to Poland. The 18th Airborne Corps, as I said in my opening
statement, that will go to Germany, they will form a joint task force headquarters.
And that's usually, depending on the need and the task at hand, several hundred people. So the majority of the 2,000 I mentioned that comprise the
82nd Airborne brigade combat team, that leading element, they will be going to Poland.
Kelly from News Nation?
QUESTION: Hi, John. Thanks for taking my question. I know you said we'll adjust this posture as conditions evolve. I was curious because we're
seeing ordinary Ukrainians -- teachers, moms, dads, dentists -- learning to use guns to defend themselves. There are calls in Washington for the
Pentagon to support them.
Are any of these troops going to help them?
And how will the president's order change the mission of the Florida National Guard troops currently in Ukraine?
KIRBY: As I said at the top, Kelly, the president is being clear and I think we've made it eminently clear in my opening statement, these troops
will not be going to Ukraine to participate in the defense of Ukraine.
The president has been very clear about that. These forces are going to reassure and to bolster capabilities inside NATO's eastern flank.
And as for the Florida National Guard, trainers, they are still in Ukraine. There has been no decision to change their status. They're still there,
providing advice and assist to Ukrainian armed forces.
And if and when there is a need to make a different decision about their presence there, the secretary will absolutely do that in consultation with
the European Command commander General Walters. But no decision has been made yet. Tony.
QUESTION: Hey, John, when you say it will be obvious when NATO arrives, I want to piggyback on David Martin's question, is it likely they're going to
parachute in as a symbolic drop to send a message to Putin?
KIRBY: Again, I don't -- I'm not going to talk about their travel there and how they're going to arrive.
[10:25:00]
KIRBY: I don't anticipate it will be a tactical operation in that regard, though, Tony.
QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) just rule it out?
KIRBY: David, I said I don't expect it's going to be some sort of tactical operation. But I don't have additional information today about that.
And wait, quite frankly, I'm not sure that's all that relevant. They're going and they're going to bolster our capabilities in NATO. And that's the
most important part here.
QUESTION: Relevant or not, did you say (INAUDIBLE), did you say no?
KIRBY: David, I didn't say no. I said I don't expect that there will be some sort of tactical operation here.
QUESTION: Who will command these troops?
Is it General Walters.
And is that splitting his role as --
KIRBY: He already has a split role as a Supreme Allied Commander in Europe. Ultimately, he will be the top of the chain of command for them
while they're in Europe. I don't have -- I don't have more additional information about the C2 arrangement right now. But we can get that.
Let me go back to the phones here.
(CROSSTALK)
QUESTION: Sorry, John, I'm on. I didn't unmute myself.
Can you talk about whatever additional airlift capacity might be needed to shift these troops and what role Air Mobility Command would play in this?
KIRBY: I don't have specifics on the airlift here, Tara. Obviously, this is a reasonable amount of forces that will -- that Air Mobility Command
will be able to transport. I don't foresee there a need for some sort of surge of airlift activity to get these folks over there.
Go ahead.
QUESTION: I just need a couple of clarifications, the 8,500 forces that now remain on heightened readiness, that means that 2,000 additional troops
were put on readiness, where are those people located?
And then my second followup is concerning the National Guard forces that are with Ukraine.
Does that mean, since you're not sending anymore to help with the security and they're not pulling out, that DOD at this point doesn't feel that their
safety is threatened?
Thanks.
KIRBY: On the numbers, I think I'll leave it the way I couched it in my opening statement because I don't -- there is really no changes here. As I
said, the 8,500 are still on prepare to deploy orders, they have not been activated.
We have, as you clearly know now, activated others to move them as a U.S. decision. And as I said, I think earlier to Sylvie's question, there are
additional in addition to the 8,500 -- yes, the secretary has put on prepare to deploy additional U.S. forces. I'm not prepared to go into
detail about that today.
When and if we're able to speak to future movements, we'll speak to future movements. We'll be as transparent with you as we possibly can but we're
also going to need to be, as you might understand, a little careful with the amount of detail that we put out there ahead of time.
So we'll do the best we can to be transparent with you.
On the National Guard, again, no change to their presence or posture in Ukraine. As I've said many times, the secretary takes their safety and
their security to be a paramount concern. We're in constant communication with European Command about their presence, what they're doing.
And if and when the secretary believes that it is the appropriate time for them to leave, if it's sooner than their deployment is up, then he'll make
that decision. And again, we'll let you know. But right now, they're still there, still providing training, advice and assistance to the Ukrainian
armed forces. Helene Cooper.
Hey, Kirby, thanks for doing this. I'm still trying to figure out the -- I'm still a little bit stuck on the numbers. You said that you're not
ruling out possible additional troops to being deployed to Europe.
Are you saying that would be in addition to the 8,500 who are on high alert?
KIRBY: Exactly what I'm saying. The vast majority, 8,500, are designed for the NATO response force. That response force has not been activated, as I
said in the opening. But we are not ruling out the possibility there will be other U.S. moves inside Europe; in other words, just like we're moving
the striker squadron from Germany to Romania.
[10:30:00]
KIRBY: There could be other movements inside Europe, theater moves that we would speak to; we're not ruling that out. And we're also not ruling out
the possibility that additional forces from the United States could deploy to Europe.
All we can speak to today are the troops that we've announced. And as decisions get made, if there is a need, as I said in my opening, we're
constantly looking at the conditions there.
If we believe the conditions warrant and if we believe consultations with the allies also would demand additional U.S. force capability, we'll
entertain those discussions and we'll make those decisions and we'll announce them. Louie Martinez.
QUESTION: We're on high alert right now?
KIRBY: Senior, I cut you off, I think.
QUESTION: Are there additional troops in the U.S. who are on higher alert right now?
KIRBY: Paul McCleary?
I'm sorry, Louie Martinez?
QUESTION: Hey, John, question is about your comments earlier, saying that NATO matters. You're saying that these troops are going under unilateral
U.S. control, that this is a U.S. mission.
Are you inferring (sic) that these troops would immediately transition to NATO control should NATO decide to active the NATO response force?
And another question as well about the -- there is a deployment ongoing right now in Estonia, some F-15s.
Have they been extended beyond the current end date of this week?
Thank you.
KIRBY: I don't have anything on the F-15s, Louie. I can ask about that. But my hunch is that -- no, that there's no plans to extend them but let me
just check on that.
And then to your other question, these forces are going under bilateral arrangements between the United States and the countries in question; in
this case, Poland, Germany and Romania. And they will remain under the U.S. chain of command.
That's a separate and distinct mission than the NATO response force which we talked about, our contribution to that being the bulk of that 8,500 that
we talked about last week.
That would be under NATO command and control structure. I'm not going to hypothesize or speculate about the future for these U.S. units and what
it's going to look like going forward. There is no expectation at this time that they would necessarily have to fall under some sort of NATO command
and control.
They are going as a U.S. contribution in consultation with the allies in question to help bolster their defenses and to prove and to show and to
demonstrate our commitment to the defense of our NATO allies. And again, I don't foresee any command and control changes for them going forward.
Paul?
QUESTION: Hi, John.
Is the United States prepared to negotiate with the Russians over the aegis of shore sites in Poland and Romania or allow, possibly allow, for Russian
inspections of those sites?
KIRBY: Look, I'm not going to speak to the -- I'm certainly not going to negotiate here in public. We have laid out a very serious set of proposals
diplomatically to Russia. As I said at the outset, a European news outlet decided to publish that proposal. You can go look for it yourself.
But it demonstrates what we've said publicly is the same as what we've been saying privately to the Russians, that we're willing, with an eye toward
reciprocity to consider addressing mutual security concerns on the European continent. And I'd leave it at that and refer you to my State Department
colleagues.
Again, I'm not going to negotiate here in public.
I'm going back into the room, Janie.
QUESTION: Thank you, John. On Crimea issues, it was reported that the United States and South Korea are coordinating the post deployment of a
joint exercise.
And do you know that North Korea continues to conduct winter military exercises, why U.S. and South Korea exercises is always postponed or
cancelled?
Can you comment on that?
KIRBY: Janie, I mean, as I've said many times, we take our readiness on the peninsula very, very seriously. Decisions about how we preserve that
readiness and maintain it are decisions we make in lockstep with our South Korean allies.
And that includes training events. You talk about it as if we've not done any or we're not doing any or that we're not taking training seriously.
That is not the case.
[10:35:00]
KIRBY: But as we do anywhere in the world, we do the same in Korea. We constantly evaluate and review our training exercises, our training events,
training in education and adapt it as conditions warrant. And that's no different than what you're seeing on the Korean Peninsula.
QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE) and South Koreans want additional (INAUDIBLE) deployment into Korea to defend against the North Koreans' missile threats.
Of course, China didn't wanted these.
Are you considering these?
KIRBY: We are constantly consulting with our South Korean allies about readiness and capabilities. I have no announcements on missile defense
systems to make today.
Pierre.
QUESTION: Thank you. If I may take you back to the readout of the call of Secretary Austin with the crowned prince of the United Arab Emirates, there
is an announcement, in fact, in the readout that U.S.S. Cole will be deployed and also fifth generation fighters aircraft sent to United Arab
Emirates.
Can you talk a little bit with some details about what is the mission?
What are we trying to achieve?
What is the details about what they will be doing?
KIRBY: Pierre, I think it's very much in keeping with what we said just in the last few days as we've seen attacks on Al Dhafra. We take our defense
relationship very seriously with the Emiratis. We recognize the threats they are very -- that they are under in a very real way.
And some of the things that secretary discussed yesterday and you saw in our readout with this counterpart is that we want to -- we want to add to
their ability to help defend themselves and to demonstrate, clearly and tangibly, our commitment to this important partnership.
And so these are two tangible ways in which we believe we can help the Emiratis deal with these very serious threats.
And again, we're not going to rule out additional steps. As I said yesterday, we're constantly looking at this to make sure we're best
postured to help defend our interests and the interests of our partners and the Emiratis are a terrific, strong partner in the region.
QUESTION: Secretary Austin and General Milley are on the Hill today for closed door meetings about the Afghan withdrawal.
And there are notes that came out from an NSC meeting that suggested, on August 14th, preparations had not been made for where to evacuate both
Americans and Afghan civilians who had applied for SIV status in those late hours.
Those decisions were still being made as the Taliban were moving into Kabul.
Is that accurate and is that true that, at that late stage, preparations had not been made as to where --
ANDERSON: All right. You've been listening to U.S. Pentagon spokesman John Kirby, providing more detail on President Biden's announcement that more
U.S. troops will be sent to Europe.
John Kirby said, and I quote, "The U.S. stands shoulder to shoulder with NATO allies."
The president, he said, is being clear that the U.S. will respond to the growing threat to European security and stability. And in order to be
prepared, he delineated the following: 1,000 U.S. soldiers currently based in Germany will relocate to Romania to augment the current 900 U.S. forces
currently there.
He said this is at the express invite of the Romanian government. France, he said, will also send troops to Romania. Approximately 2,000 troops from
the U.S. will be sent to Europe in the next few days. The majority will deploy to Poland, the others to Germany.
These are to deter aggression and reassure U.S. allies, he said. And he insisted that these are not permanent moves. He said the U.S. will adjust
as conditions evolve.
And his third point, these are separate and in addition to the 8,500 U.S. troops that we already knew about, that are ready to move as part of a NATO
rapid response force if called upon.
John Kirby said this is not the sum total of deterrence actions that the U.S. could or will take. Things could change. We don't know whether Russia
has taken the decision to invade Ukraine but it clearly has that ability.
[10:40:00]
ANDERSON: And he went on to say that Putin continues to add forces, arms and offensive capabilities in western Russia and Belarus. He has shown no
signs that he will deescalate the tensions.
And before I bring Cedric and Nic in, I just want to underscore that John Kirby made a point to say that, in the light of information leaked to a
European media organization in Spain, that the U.S. could be willing to enter into an agreement with Russia to ease tensions over missile
deployments in Europe if Moscow steps back from the brink.
John Kirby said there is no daylight between our public statements and our private discussions. Let me bring in my two experts here. Nic is standing
by in Moscow and he will pull apart what he has just been listening to.
But I want to start with you, Cedric. You're a colonel. You've been listening to John Kirby, who is a military man himself.
What do you make of what we just heard?
These are new announcements of new troop deployments from the U.S.
COL. CEDRIC LEIGHTON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: That's exactly right, Becky. And I think what is really interesting about this is the kind of
combat capability that we're talking about here.
Brigade combat team, composed of units of the 82nd Airborne and the 18th Airborne Corps is a very effective unit of maneuver. It is in one of the
most lethal elements that the U.S. Army can deploy.
And what it is designed to do, of course, is act as a deterrent to any possible Russian moves into NATO territory. So you know, John Kirby
mentioned very specifically there would be no U.S. deployment to defend Ukraine.
But what these teams could do and he did not deny this part is they could be used in a non-combatant evacuation or so-called neo operation should
there be a need to evacuate U.S. and allied personnel from Kyiv.
So this is what we're talking about, a lethal, agile capability to put the Russians on notice, if they move in certain areas, we would respond in
certain ways. As some of them would be, some of those responses would perhaps deter Putin, others might not.
But at least this would be a prepositioning of this capability in Eastern Europe, especially Romania and Poland. And that is something I think will
be very important for those two countries in this particular case.
ANDERSON: So there are 1,000 troops being redeployed who are already in Europe and 2,000 troops to be deployed from the U.S. to Europe, some into
Poland and some into Germany. I want you to explain for our viewers. These are separate and in addition to the 8,500 U.S. troops that we know are
ready to move from the U.S., should they be called on as part of a NATO rapid response force.
Barbara Starr, my colleague at CNN, our colleague at CNN, did ask John Kirby, why it is the U.S. isn't waiting for a NATO vote on this but is
moving these troops around and into Europe and at the specific request of certain countries.
Why is it?
Why now?
LEIGHTON: Well, I think it's very important for the U.S. to preposition its forces. So from a military perspective, Becky, you're looking at
getting ready. This makes the NATO vote easier, should there be a requirement to have a NATO vote and it also streamlines the chain of
command for those military forces.
So we have a total of about 11,500, give or take a few hundred troops, that will either be in Europe or be prepared to deploy to Europe. That is a
fairly substantial force; certainly not as many by far as what the Russians have against Ukraine.
But this streamlines the commitment and control of those troops and allows the U.S. to act whichever way is most militarily prudent, either in a
combat role or a defensive role or an evacuation role.
ANDERSON: Nic, let me bring you in at this point. Again, I want to pick apart some of what John Kirby said here.
He said this is not the sum total of the deterrence actions we will or could take. He said things could change. He made this point. You're in
Moscow and this is specifically why I want you to speak to this.
He said the U.S. does not know whether Russia has taken the decision to invade Ukraine but he said it clearly has that ability. He said Putin
continues to add forces on to defensive capabilities into Western Russia and Belarus. He has, he said, shown no signs that he will deescalate the
tensions.
[10:45:00]
ANDERSON: New/different, part of the same narrative from the U.S.?
What is your take here?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Becky, it is very hard to know precisely what intelligence the Pentagon has. It's certainly
going to be a lot more precise than what we would have access to.
But the latest satellite images that have come out in the last 24 hours do show additional tents going up at Russian bases in Crimea, to appear to
indicate there would be more Russian troops deployed there.
I'm interested in what President Zelensky said about tamping down the idea there could be -- Russia could be on the verge on an invasion. He said our
intelligence has found that tents have been empty. He wasn't talking about those tents that we now know are in Crimea but he made the reference, that
Russia is not beyond creating an image that it knows on the ground it will be picked up by satellite.
But I think some of the other evidence that is coming to light, that presents an increasing concern is this joint military exercises between
Russia and the Belarus authorities that is very close to Kyiv, the capital, just across the border.
The troops arrayed along the border there -- and we know from the U.S. ambassador to the U.N. just a couple of days ago saying they expected the
5,000 there right now, expecting that to ramp up to about 30,000.
But then it's the types of equipment. Unlike the satellite imagery that can perhaps be faked on the ground, if you will, by empty tents or whatever,
you know, diversions can be created; both sides are aware of that.
But images that are appearing on social media now of the troops and equipment that are going into place in Belarus indicate beyond standard
military there is a sophisticated surface to air missiles and the fighter bomber jets. There are paratroopers, et cetera, et cetera.
But on some social media platforms that we've not been able to verify give an indication that there are forces going in, more used to being deployed
in sort of crowd control, social control environments, you know, in a situation where an army could go in and a force would follow on, that would
then control streets, control crowd control.
Go out and arrest people and take them back to bases and that sort of thing. So you know, if the Pentagon is seeing what we're seeing on some
apparent social media postings -- and they've got the intelligence ability to know and to be able to verify this -- that becomes worrying because that
much more begins to look like a potential invasion of forces.
Not only there for military exercises but it's got components that can do civilian control following an invasion. So the bottom line is we don't
know. Russia keeps denying but the elements keep building up that would make that capable.
And to that point, the U.S. position on that has been, if you're serious about diplomacy, then deescalate your forces.
But at the same time, the United States and other NATO nations are taking the position that Putin has called their bluff before. They're not going to
let that happen. He's ramping up his position and they're taking an incredibly firm stand in the face of it -- Becky.
ANDERSON: Colonel, does the U.S. have any other choice than to effect a strategy that we are seeing revealed today?
And let's remember, I mean, that John Kirby said this may not be the extent of deployments into Eastern Europe; it will depend on what happens next out
of Moscow.
LEIGHTON: Exactly, Becky. And I think the answer is that the U.S. has no choice if they're going to maintain a credible deterrence force, if they're
going to be a credible deterrent to Russian moves. They have to show some effort at deploying these forces into Europe.
So, yes, there is absolutely a symbolic component to this. But there's also a serious military combat capability that comes with these forces. And the
fact that combat capability, a well tested capability, in fact, the fact that that is being deployed into Europe, especially in frontline states
like Romania and Poland, that becomes a very critical issue, not only in an effort to reassure NATO allies.
But it also is an effort to send a signal not only to Russia but to other countries watching this. And it also of course sends a signal to Ukraine.
So yes, this is critical, important and we have no choice in the matter.
[10:50:00]
ANDERSON: To both of you for the time being, thank you very much, indeed for joining us.
I'm going to take a very short break. Back after this.
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ANDERSON: Well, the U.S. stands shoulder to shoulder with its NATO allies. Those are the words of the Pentagon spokesman John Kirby just moments ago
as he laid out what the U.S. proposes to do in response to what he describes as the growing threat to European security and stability.
One, 1,000 U.S. soldiers, who are currently based in Germany, will relocate to Romania to augment the current U.S. forces, 900 of them currently there.
This is at the express invite of the Romanian government. They will be supported by French troops that will also be sent to Romania.
He said, two, approximately 2,000 troops from the United States will be deployed to Europe in the next few days; the majority to Poland, others to
Germany. And these are to deter aggression and reassure U.S. allies.
John Kirby insisted these are not permanent moves. He said the U.S. will adjust as conditions improve.
He said finally, he explained these are separate and in addition to the 8,500 U.S. troops we already know stand ready to move out of the U.S. into
Eastern Europe as part of a NATO rapid response force if they are called upon to do so. More at the top of the hour for you.
Well, other news this hour, Britain has been trying to tamp down tensions. Prime minister Boris Johnson visited Kyiv on Tuesday and is set to speak
with Vladimir Putin in the coming hours.
But many lawmakers at home are not happy with the job that the prime minister is doing at home or internationally. A senior member of Mr.
Johnson's own Conservative Party, Tobias Ellwood says he will submit a letter of no confidence in the prime minister.
Here you see Boris Johnson leaving Downing Street for his weekly PMQs. He's been answering a slew of questions from Parliament but dodged several on
the so-called Partygate issue. Salma Abdelaziz is live outside 10 Downing Street with the latest.
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Becky, today the prime minister's strategy was simple: it was one of delay and distract. He was willing to
talk to Parliament about anything -- Brexit, Ukraine, the COVID crisis, anything but Partygate.
Anytime he was asked a question, he simply evaded it. At one point one MP Ian Blackford began again asking questions about Partygate and Boris
Johnson said, "Here we go again," as if he couldn't even be bothered to answer the question, Becky.
But I think it outlines the prime minister's strategy here. He simply doesn't want to discuss it anymore. He wants to move on. He wants to point
to the police investigation. But it's not a strategy that is working.
That police investigation is a very serious matter. Something extraordinary that is happening in this country, the police looking potentially into
COVID rules being broken right behind me here under the prime minister's roof.
And if rules are found to be broken, we could see Downing Street staff fined. And it simply hasn't been enough for his own party.
[10:55:00]
ABDELAZIZ: As you mentioned there, a senior Tory member, Tobias Ellwood today, saying he's going to put forward that vote of no confidence. This is
extremely important. He is a former member of the military. He is the chairman of the defense committee in this country. He's someone who is
highly respected.
And he is now saying Johnson is a distraction. He is saying that lawmakers have been able to do little else other than talk about Partygate, Becky?
ANDERSON: What is this letter of no confidence being submitted by Mr. Ellwood himself, a military man, I'd say, mean for Britain's role in
dealing with Russia and the Ukraine crisis?
There is a wider story here, of course, isn't there?
ABDELAZIZ: Of course. That's what Johnson wants to focus on today. He was in Ukraine yesterday and today he's expected to have a call with Putin.
That's his focus.
Ellwood is a former minister and a former military man and someone who is respected within the party and he's pointing to the prime minister and
saying, right now, this is not the person to deal with the Ukraine crisis. This is not the person to represent the U.K. on a global stage.
And that resonates with this party. We know of a small handful of MPs so far that have submitted these letters to call for a vote of no confidence
but we have yet to reach the threshold of 54 Conservative lawmakers, 15 percent, that would have to submit letters for that vote to be triggered.
Johnson's argument, his party, his strategy with them is to ask them to please wait and see what comes out of this police investigation.
But Becky, given what we saw earlier this week with the Sue Gray report, a damming condemnation of the government behind me here, accusing them of
failures of judgment, of having little thought of the sacrifices of the British public and of excessive alcohol consumption at the workplace, I
can't imagine the police investigation will turn up anything better for Johnson.
ANDERSON: At this stage, he is the prime minister, just back from Ukraine, expecting to speak to the Russian president at some point this week. We've
been hearing from the Pentagon spokesperson today about or certainly this hour about extra U.S. troop deployments to Eastern Europe.
We will do more on that in the second hour of what is CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD live from Abu Dhabi.
It just before 8 o'clock in the evening. Back after this.
END
