Washington. January 8th. INTERFAX - Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said that Washington is not considering the possibility of reducing the number of American troops in Europe.
"NBC reports on the measures that the United States is considering on the eve of negotiations with Russia. I can state unequivocally: we are not considering a reduction of troops in Europe or a change of position on this issue. We also do not consider changes in the number of troops in the Baltic States and in Poland," Kirby tweeted on Saturday.
On the eve of the NBC TV channel, citing sources familiar with the American position, reported that the US administration is ready to discuss the possibility of reducing the military presence in eastern Europe at the upcoming consultations with the Russian Federation, provided that Russia is also ready for such measures.
"The administration of (US President Joe - IF) Biden, ahead of talks with Russia next week, is not sure that she is ready for serious discussions. But if this is the case, then American officials will be ready to offer discussions on how to reduce the presence of US and Russian forces in Eastern Europe, as well as how to reduce the scale of exercises there," the TV channel noted.
According to him, we can talk, in particular, about the number of American military contingents in the Baltic States and Poland, as well as about warning each other in advance about the movement of forces. The Americans are also interested in negotiations on Iskander missiles in Kaliningrad, the report says.
"If it turns out that Russia is ready to discuss reducing its presence in the region, the United States will be ready to discuss concrete steps," the TV channel quoted an unnamed American official as saying.
