After almost 80 years, the U.S. Army's renowned 101st Airborne Division – known by the moniker "Screaming Eagles" – was deployed in preparation for missions on the Ukrainian front.
According to CBS News, the light infantry unit is a modular division of the Army trained to deploy on any battlefield worldwide within hours, ready to fight. Paratroopers from the division – who were particularly trained for air assault missions – gained notoriety during World War II for participating in the Battle of the Bulge and the D-Day landings in Normandy. It was later reclassified twice during the Vietnam War, first as an airmobile division and then as an air assault division.
CBS News joined the division's deputy commander, Brig. Gen. John Lubas, 2nd Brigade Combat team commander Col. Edwith Matthaidess during a trip to the Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base. The two officers traveled in a Black Hawk military helicopter for the hourlong trip to the very edge of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) land territory.
"We're ready to defend every inch of NATO soil," said Lubas. "We bring a unique capability, from our air assault capability. We're a light infantry force, but again, we bring that mobility with us for our aircraft and air assaults."
Matthaidess, meanwhile, told CBS News that he and his troops were the closest U.S. forces to Ukraine. "It keeps us on our toes," he said, referring to how they have been "closely watching" the Russian forces, "building objectives to practice against" and conducting drills that "replicate exactly what's going on" in the war.
About 4,700 soldiers from the 101st Airborne's home base in Fort Campbell, Kentucky were deployed to secure NATO's eastern territory. They have been establishing a garrison at the air base of the Romanian Armed Forces, named after the country's third prime minister. (Related: Biden regime putting American troops in Ukraine, setting country up for direct engagement in World War III.)
"The real meaning for me, to have the American troops here, is like if you were to have allies in Normandy before any enemy was there," remarked Maj. Gen. Iulian Berdila, the commander of the Romanian Land Forces' Multinational Brigade South-East.
Deployment comes amid the Russia-Ukraine war taking a different turn
The deployment of the Screaming Eagles came amid Ukrainian forces advancing in the Kherson region, which Russia recently annexed alongside the Zaporizhzhia region and the Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics. Moscow is believed to have fortified Kherson to prevent Kyiv from retaking it.
Russia is determined to capture the two Ukrainian port cities of Mykolaiv and Odesa in order to cut off Kyiv's access from the Black Sea and limit its forces to the ground. To accomplish this, the Russian forces have conducted aerial raids against Ukraine. The resulting attack hit civilian settlements and impacted energy infrastructure, causing widespread power outages.
The 101st Airborne's deployment served as a response to "combat" the threat of Moscow taking the two port cities by using its advantage over Kherson. Incidentally, the Mihail Kogalniceanu air base is located in Constanta County, which faces both Mykolaiv and Odesa.
Both Lubas and Matthaidess reiterated that while they are in Romania to defend NATO territory, they are completely prepared to cross the border into Ukraine the moment combat intensifies or if a NATO country comes under attack.
WWIII.news has more stories related to the Russia-Ukraine war.
Watch this video about updates from the Russia-Ukraine war, including the deployment of the 101st Airborne Division to Romania.
This video is from The Prisoner channel on Brighteon.com.
More related stories:
Democrat Sen. Chris Coons wants to send American troops to Ukraine.
It is only a question of time before British and American troops are sent to Ukraine.
ESCALATION: NATO deploys 30,000 troops, 50 warships for huge "war games" on Russia's border.
Sources include:
Please contact us for more information.