War in Ukraine: NATO needs more bases in Eastern Europe, says US general

NATO should establish more permanent military bases in Eastern Europe, said US Army Chief of Staff General Mark Miley.

He called for the creation of new structures on the east side of NATO, and more specifically in the Baltic states, Poland and Romania. In fact, he argued that these new bases should be funded by the countries in which they will host them, adding that they should increase the amounts they give for their defense coverage, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. “They will make them and pay for them,” he said.

NATO troops are already in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, while presence is expected to increase in Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and Bulgaria.

The United States is responsible for 69 percent of the alliance’s military spending, and the government of US President Joe Biden is under pressure from within to reduce NATO’s dependence on the country. That’s why Biden recently tried to persuade members to increase their financial participation.

Last year, only eight countries contributed as expected, ie 2% of their GDP: Greece, the USA, Poland, the United Kingdom, Croatia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

The issue of setting up new permanent military bases in Eastern Europe is likely to be discussed at the NATO summit scheduled for Madrid in June.

In addition, Miley said that it does not appear on the horizon that Russia will reduce its aggression.

Ukraine has successfully repulsed Russian forces in Kyiv, Miley said, but “there is a big battle ahead of us in the southeastern part of the country as Russia has refocused its military efforts around the Donbas region.” “There, the Russians intend to transfer mass forces and continue their attack.”

The question of how this war ends remains open at this time, he said, adding that at best, Putin decides to end this war. But this is not something that seems possible.

Source: News Beast

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