'Y'all Ready For This': Russian Troops in Ukraine Shape NATO's Counter to Putin

[Purveyor]

NATO's response to Russia's latest incursion into Ukrainian territory came into focus on Tuesday -- and it's forceful.

Russian tanks, troops, and artillery reportedly crossed into a previously unbreached border of eastern Ukraine on Tuesday, Aug. 26, opening a third front near the city of Novoazovsk and leading Ukrainian forces into a chaotic retreat. Western officials told the New York Times that they fear Russia is carving out a land bridge to the Crimean peninsula, which Russia annexed earlier this year.

NATO answered by announcing it would deploy troops to new bases in Eastern Europe, the first time soldiers serving under the NATO banner have been sent to a former Soviet bloc nation. NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the move is a direct response to Russian aggression in Ukraine.

"We will adopt what we call a readiness action plan with the aim to be able to act swiftly in this completely new security environment in Europe," Rasmussen told European newspapers. "We have something already called the NATO Response Force, whose purpose is to be able to be deployed rapidly if needed. Now it's our intention to develop what I would call a spearhead within that response force at very, very high readiness."

NATO is also shipping more supplies and other equipment to these bases so that troops can quickly respond to crises in Eastern Europe, Rasmussen said.

more...

http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2014/08/27/russian_troops_in_ukraine_shape_nato_counter_to_putin

[jakeXT]

1. Happy Birthday

[newthinking]

2. But wait. I thought they were already in Ukraine? But now they really really are there?

[Tommy_Carcetti]

3. Russian troops have been in Ukrainian territory since late February. nt

[bemildred]

4. That NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen sure is windy fellow.

"We will adopt what we call a readiness action plan with the aim to be able to act swiftly in this completely new security environment in Europe,"

"We have something already called the NATO Response Force, whose purpose is to be able to be deployed rapidly if needed. Now it's our intention to develop what I would call a spearhead within that response force at very, very high readiness."

And here we have Chief Sterns from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles:

Chief Sterns: We are presently executing a plan of redeployment that will minimize response time while maximizing coordination between patrol units and a decentralized networking scheme.

[geek tragedy]

5. The cliffs notes version is

trespassers will be shot on sight.