From the US With Love: US Commandos Are a “Persistent Presence” on Russia’s Doorstep
NOVANEWS
By Nick Turse
Russian President Vladimir Putin. (Photo: Antonio Marín Segovia)
"They are very concerned about their adversary next door,"said General Raymond Thomas, the head of US Special Operations Command (SOCOM), at a national security conference in Aspen, Colorado, in July. "They make no bones about it."
The "they" in question were various Eastern European and Baltic nations. "Their adversary"? Vladimir Putin's Russia.
Thomas, the commander of America's most elite troops -- Navy SEALs and Army Green Berets among them -- went on to raise fears about an upcoming Russian military training event, a wargame, known as "Zapad" or "West," involving 10 Russian Navy ships, 70 jets and helicopters, and 250 tanks. "The point of concern for most of these eastern Europeans right no...