Recently the US has been making moves military wise. The US has been upping our presence in Europe, sending troop to Australia, and even thinking about sending more troops to Afghanistan. One of the biggest concerns right now is the actions of Russia. They have prompted NATO to take action in build up military near the borders of the countries next to Russia. This is a slight problem for the US though, which have last seen cold climate warfare back in World War II. The military’s ground forces especially aren’t the best prepared for change in climate.

The Marine Corps have just finished another rotational deployment to the Norwegian base in Vaernes after the first in mid January. The rotation is to get as many Marines in Norway as possible to train in arctic climate. This is to help in preparation with possible encounters with Russia. Norway also holds a great advantage with being able to access caves that store vehicles, gear and ammunition(Norwegian Base May Become Marines’ Hub in Europe). Training alongside the Norwegian military is a short yet important type of training. “That’s a ready, capable force for the United States.” said Maj. Gen. Niel Nelson.

A recent development in the Pacific has occurred involving the US Navy. A nervous China is looking at Australia as it is one of their major trading partners, but also a 1,250 Marines in Australia, of which is expected to grow to over 2,000 by 2020(China has become a looming presence in the US’s military hub in Australia).

The U.S.S. Carl Vinson was also in the recent news in relation to Australia. The Aircraft carrier was was supposedly going to the Sea of Japan to “send a message” to North Korea The White House said this, even though the Aircraft carrier, along with three other strike ships, were going another direction. These ships were headed to Australia to meet up with the Australian Navy to take part in joint exercises. The government is saying that there were communication issues that prompted the ill-timed announcement. This ill-timed announcement caused a fear that President Trump was planning a preemptive strike like in Syria.

Lastly the Trump administration is thinking about sending more troops to Afghanistan. More specifically, they are aiming to send at least 5,000 more. With President Trump wanting to start “Winning again”, he wants to make up his mind before the NATO Summit in Brussels on May 25th. The purpose of this all is to reduce “the threat” says Spicer. Though the Afghanistan Policy review hasn’t even made it to the principals committee at the National Security Council, meaning that a decision will not come soon(Trump Weighs Sending as Many as 5,000 More Troops to Afghanistan). Experts say this is to break the stalemate that The US has been having(WILL TRUMP SEND A TROOP SURGE TO AFGHANISTAN?).

The main goals of the US forces in Afghanistan are to train as well as advise the Afghan Forces in counter terrorism missions(WILL TRUMP SEND A TROOP SURGE TO AFGHANISTAN?). Even if Trump were to send in ore troops, the impact wouldn’t be what was expected. Although a policy researcher Rebecca Zimmerman says that the reasoning behind it is” to prevent the collapse of the Afghanistan Government”(WILL TRUMP SEND A TROOP SURGE TO AFGHANISTAN?).

To say the least, The US is making big moves with its military with the rising tension around the world. We can only hope that the US government doesn’t make the wrong move.