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Russian Defense Ministry: NATO deploys troops along Russian border under drills' guise

Russian deputy defense minister said that there are countries owing Russia "a great deal" among those boosting military presence

MOSCOW, November 30. /TASS/. NATO is amassing troops in countries bordering Russia, Russian Deputy Defense Minister, Colonel General Alexander Fomin, told reporters on Friday.

"The NATO member-countries are arming themselves, with troops, heavy and armored vehicles being amassed in the Baltic countries, Poland and other countries under the guise of drills," he said.

According to Fomin, among the countries building up their military presence are the ones that owe a great deal to Russia. "We lost over 600,000 lives for Poland. Now Poland is the key proponent of that plan and is ready to open a base and three command centers on its soil," he added.

Some Polish media outlets earlier reported that Poland’s and the United States’ plans to set up a permanent US military base dubbed Fort Trump are unlikely to be executed, and the parties are exploring other options.

At a news conference in the White House on September 18, Polish President Andrzej Duda called on Washington to send more US troops to his country, arguing that would meet the two countries’ interests.

Warsaw earlier agreed to earmark up to $2bln to finance the establishment of a permanent US military base on its soil.

Poland currently hosts a US armor brigade of 3,500 men on a rotating basis. Also, there is a multi-national NATO battalion (another 1,000 troops).

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