MOSCOW. Aug 3 (Interfax) - By redeploying an additional 1,000 of its troops to Poland the United States wants to maintain and develop its network of military intelligence facilities near the Russian border, according to Prof. Yevgeny Nikitenko of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations and the Russian Academy of National Economy and Public Administration and an expert on military conflicts and geostrategic forecast.
"The Pentagon chief's claim that redeployment of this contingent would enable the U.S. to deter Moscow more efficiently sounds pretty loudly. Mainly because it is a political statement. At the same time, the contingent's troop numbers, even if comparatively small, pose certain risks to Russia. It is even less about numbers and more about the quality of the army contingent," Nikitenko told Interfax on Monday.
One of the main tasks of this redeployment for Washington, and the Pentagon in particular, is to enhance the U.S. military intelligence capabilities in close proximity of Russia's western borders, the expert said.
"The Americans are thus hoping to develop their military intelligence infrastructure, given the proximity of the Kaliningrad and other regions in northwestern Russia. The U.S. is also seeing another important practical element to it. Over the past few years the U.S. has created an extensive network of intelligence facilities in Ukraine. This network will supposedly be integrated with the U.S. military infrastructure in Poland," Nikitenko said.
The deployment of the additional contingent will require the U.S. to provide for standard U.S. military infrastructure such as housing and so on, he said.
Poland pins big hopes of the arrival of U.S. troops, he said. "The reasons are purely economical, both for Poland's budget as a whole and for the local budgets of the specific places where the troops will be stationed. The U.S. troops will go to Polish shops and restaurants, which is not bad for the Polish budget," he said.
The Pentagon chief Mark Esper said on Monday that the U.S. decision to redeploy an additional 1,000 troops on a rotating basis to Poland would deter Russia more efficiently.