US Army Heading Back to Europe, Only Further East

According to the Army Times, there's a significant force headed back to Europe and deploying further east...

The Army is dialing up its missions in the regions with plans to:

• Continue three-month troop deployments of about 800 soldiers, with the likely addition of aviation rotations.
• Contribute soldiers to a NATO response force of an expected 4,000 to 5,000 troops.
• Add a brigade's worth of tanks and Bradleys by the end of 2015.

All of these efforts by the U.S. Army in Europe is part of what Lt. Gen. Frederick "Ben" Hodges, commanding general of U.S. Army Europe, has dubbed "Strong Europe."

"Strong Europe is meant to convey the framework of what U.S. Army Europe, as a forward-stationed force, is able to provide on behalf of the Army to [European Command] and NATO," he said. "It's about relationships, the training centers, the infrastructure, as well as the organizations that are here."