An armoured US battalion is arriving in Lithuania on Friday amid heightened tensions with Belarus.
The 2nd Battalion of the 69th Regiment of the US Army 2nd Brigade will train with Lithuanian and other NATO troops in the Pabradė, close to Vilnius, according to the Lithuanian Defence Ministry. The American rotation will bring Abrams tanks and Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles.
The US troops are part of the US Army operation Atlantic Resolve, which is aimed at deterring Russia’s aggression in the region. American troops have been training in the Baltic states and Eastern Europe since Russia's annexation of Crimea in the spring of 2014.
Belarus’ Alexander Lukashenko previously said NATO troops in Poland and Lithuania pose a threat, and put most of the country’s military on combat readiness. NATO and Lithuanian officials dismissed the statement as an attempt to divert attention from repressions on protesters in Belarus.
Read more: Lukashenko puts troops on alert, Lithuania says regime ‘trying to divert attention’
"These exercises of the US troops in Lithuania are pre-planned and not associated with any events in the region," Lithuanian Defence Ministry said on Wednesday.
An armoured US battalion previously deployed to Lithuania for training between October 2019 and June 2020.
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