U.S. troops stationed in Poland are setting up processing centers for potential evacuees should Russia launch an invasion into the interior of Ukraine, The New York Times reported on Tuesday.
Of the 4,700 troops from the 82nd Airborne Division, military officials told the outlet most were assisting Polish forces in creating the centers, which few Ukrainians have sought to use so far.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin alluded during a press conference in Warsaw last week that the division may assist in helping U.S. citizens leave Ukraine, per The Hill.
"We appreciate Poland for hosting an additional 4,700 U.S. soldiers who are prepared to respond to a range of [contingencies], and they will work closely with our State Department and with Polish authorities, should there be any need to help American citizens leave Ukraine," Austin said on Friday.
The U.S. has also deployed 300 troops from the 18th Airborne Corps to Germany and repositioned 1,000 troops stationed in Germany to Romania. Additionally, the outlet reported more than 8,500 U.S. troops are currently placed on heightened alert to deploy.
The news of troop movements comes as President Joe Biden announced a series of sanctions in response to the Kremlin recognizing the independence of two separatist regions in Ukraine and ordered Russian troops to carry out "peacekeeping missions" in support of the rebel states.
"I'm going to take robust action to make sure the pain of our sanctions is targeted at the Russian economy, not ours," Biden said in a Tuesday press briefing, according to USA Today. "We're closely monitoring energy supplies for any disruption."
The sanctions cut off the Russian government, the Russian Central Bank, and its sovereign wealth funds from U.S. financing.
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