Pentagon orders departure of U.S. troops in Ukraine as Russia crisis escalates

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• The Pentagon ordered all U.S. troops in Ukraine to leave the country and reposition elsewhere in Europe.
  
• The new marching order comes as an estimated 100,000 Russian troops equipped with advanced weaponry line Ukraine’s eastern border and northern border with Belarus.
  
• Meanwhile, the State Department reduced its diplomatic staff at the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv to the “bare minimum.”
  

WASHINGTON – Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ordered U.S. troops who deployed to Ukraine last year to leave the country and reposition elsewhere in Europe.

The new marching order comes as an estimated 100,000 Russian troops equipped with advanced weaponry line Ukraine’s eastern border and the northern border with Belarus, a Moscow ally.

In November, 160 members of the Florida National Guard, assigned to the 53rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, deployed to Ukraine to train with local forces.

“The Secretary made this decision out of an abundance of caution — with the safety and security of our personnel foremost in mind — and informed by the State Department’s guidance on U.S. personnel in Ukraine,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby wrote in a statement.

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