Kremlin blasts U.S. for deploying troops to NATO’s eastern flank, even as Russia continues buildup around Ukraine

Russia assailed the United States for deploying thousands of additional U.S. troops to NATO’s eastern flank to bolster alliance defenses, even as Moscow continued a buildup of Russian forces and materiel around Ukraine that has stoked fears in Washington of a new, large-scale war in Europe.

The Kremlin said Thursday that Russia would be “absolutely justified” if it chooses to respond to the Pentagon’s deployment, announced this week, of an additional 3,000 U.S. troops to Poland, Romania and Germany.