US Troops Hold Joint Drills in Poland

Local Editor

US and Polish soldiers, alongside newly delivered American military hardware, have conducted joint drills as part of the biggest US deployment in Europe since the end of the Cold War.

Servicemen of the 3,500-strong 3rd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, from Fort Carson, Colorado showcased some of their skills in front of Commander of the US Army Europe, Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, US Ambassador Paul Jones and Polish President Andrzej Duda said in Zagan on Monday.

The drills, which started at around 1:30 pm local time and lasted for about an hour, demonstrated US troops' resolve to deter the "unlikely" potential aggression from Russia.

During the live fire exercises in Zagan, Polish-American forces split up into two teams.

The task of the exercise was to stop the "enemy" advance from Zagan firing range over the distance of over 30 km to Zielona Gora. Leopard tanks from Poland's 11th Armored Cavalry Division and the American Abrams tanks managed to repel the "enemy attack." Anti-aircraft artillery and helicopters were also involved in the drill.

"The best way to make sure that there is never an attack [from Russia] and I believe it's unlikely, and the best way to keep it unlikely is to show a strong, deterrent capability," Lieutenant General Hodges, told reporters.

Eighty-seven US battle tanks, 144 Bradley fighting vehicles, and 3,500 soldiers arrived in Europe earlier this month as part of NATO's buildup near Russia's borders, agreed at the NATO summit in Warsaw in July.

The arrival of American military equipment and personnel in Poland is another step in Operation Atlantic Resolve, a large-scale military undertaking the US launched in April of 2014, right after Crimea voted to be part of Russia.

The largest military buildup in Europe since the end of the Cold War was part of the Obama administration's efforts to deter what it called growing ‘Russian aggression' in Eastern Europe.

Moscow has repeatedly voiced concerns over such buildup. "These actions threaten our interests, our security," President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier this month. "Especially as it concerns a third party building up its military presence near our borders."

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team