There have been a number of alarming developments in the Ukraine war, such as the depletion of much of our and Ukraine’s ammunition, which we reported on here:
But don’t take our word for it, as Joe Biden himself confirmed the drastically low ammunition stockpile levels when he decided to send cluster bombs to Ukraine, as we reported here and here.
Well, apparently, it’s not only ammunition that we are low on, but military personnel as well.
On Thursday, Joe Biden authorized the callup of 3,000 reserve troops to Europe to support “Operation Atlantic Resolve,” or U.S. support to Ukraine, and most importantly, which is largely unexplained by anyone, 450 of those 3,000 troops are involuntary callups of members of the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR), or reservists who have completed their active and reserve commitments but who are still on the reserve rolls.
The Washington Examiner reports: Biden signs order to call up 3,000 troops for Operation Atlantic Resolve in Europe:
President Joe Biden signed an order on Thursday allowing the Pentagon to call up as many as 3,000 reserve troops to support Operation Atlantic Resolve in Europe.Operation Atlantic Resolve began in 2014 in response to the Russian annexation of Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula and it “provides rotational deployments of combat-credible forces to Europe to show our commitment to NATO while building readiness, increasing interoperability, and enhancing the bonds between ally and partner militaries,” per U.S. Army Europe and Africa’s website.Last year, the administration increased the troop presence in Europe by about 20,000 troops as Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his forces to invade Ukraine, bringing the total U.S. force on the continent to approximately 100,000.
But this report does not explain that 450 of the 3,000 reservists can be members of the IRR, which Biden’s Executive Order makes clear:
In furtherance of this operation, under the stated authority, I hereby authorize the Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of Homeland Security with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service in the Navy, under their respective jurisdictions, to order to active duty any units, and any individual members not assigned to a unit organized to serve as a unit of the Selected Reserve, or any member in the Individual Ready Reserve mobilization category and designated as essential under regulations prescribed by the Secretary concerned, not to exceed 3,000 total members at any one time, of whom not more than 450 may be members of the Individual Ready Reserve
The Washington Examiner report also does not explain this little tidbit, from Biden’s required report to Congress about the reservist callup:
In accordance with section 12304(f) of title 10, United States Code, I am providing notice that I have authorized the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service in the Department of the Navy, to order to active duty members and units of the Selected Reserve and appropriately designated Individual Ready Reserve members, without the consent of the member concerned, pursuant to 12304(a) of title 10, United States Code. Reserve mobilizations under this authorization are not to exceed 3,000 total members at any one time, of whom not more than 450 may be members of the Individual Ready Reserve. These Reserve Component forces are to augment the active forces for Operation Atlantic Resolve to enhance the United States’ ability to sustain its heightened level of presence and operations in support of United States European Command. (emphasis added)
And check this out from the Army website discussing IRR callups:
Soldiers in the IRR may…be involuntarily mobilized in time of national crisis, as seen in support of the Global War on Terror.
James Hasson explains a bit more on Twitter:
Others chimed in:
Not only that, but Operation Atlantic Resolve is now a “contingency operation”…like the Iraq and Afghanistan wars:
“The designation of OAR as a contingency operation is an important demonstration of the U.S. commitment to our NATO Allies and partners,” U.S. European Command Spokesperson U.S. Navy Capt. Bill Speaks said in a statement. “It further provides US EUCOM with greater flexibility to support continued U.S. and Allied commitments to the defense of the Euro-Atlantic and allows us to provide key entitlements to the forces who support those commitments.”The operation will now be designated as a “contingency operation,” Joint Staff Director for Operations Lt. Gen. Douglas A. Sims told reporters on Thursday. “This new designation benefits troops and families with increases in authorities, entitlements, and access to the reserve component forces and personnel based on the level of presence and operations in the US EUCOM area of operation.”
Obviously, Joe Biden made some promises at this week’s NATO summit, although it is a little strange that he would be calling up reservists since he has already announced “Mission Accomplished” in Ukraine: Biden declares in Finland that Putin has ‘already lost’ Ukraine war:
President Biden said Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin has “already lost” his war in Ukraine and that it’s only a matter of time until he accepts it as a fact.Biden made the bold pronouncement during a visit to Finland to celebrate the longtime neutral Russian neighbor’s admission to NATO this past April following Moscow’s invasion in February 2022.“Putin’s already lost the war,” Biden said during a joint press conference with Finnish President Sauli Niinistö.“There’s no possibility of him winning the war in Ukraine,” Biden added. “He’s already lost that war.”
This begs the question that if Putin has already lost the war, why are we sending cluster bombs to Ukraine, and why are we involuntarily calling up IRR reservists for duty in Europe supporting Ukraine.
We will keep you updated on this.
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