As Biden Visits Europe Over Crisis, NATO Says It’s Doubling Eastern Flank Forces

NATO announced a doubling of its military presence near Ukraine on Wednesday and said the alliance would help the country prepare for possible chemical, biological and even nuclear threats from the Russian invaders, which would be a once-unthinkable expansion in the month-old war.

The announcement came hours before President Biden landed in Europe for an extraordinary strategy session with the alliance, which was created in 1949 to contain the Soviet Union. The warnings underscored the urgency of efforts to prevent the conflict from spreading beyond Ukraine and entangling NATO in a direct fight with Russia.

Mr. Biden’s NATO meeting will be followed by meetings with leaders of the Group of 7 nations and the European Union. The E.U. discussion is expected to explore ways to tighten the severe Western economic sanctions on Russia that are aimed at pressuring President Vladimir V. Putin into halting the war. Read more

@nytimes