It didn¡¯t take long after Russia attacked Ukraine for French Col. Clement Torrent to get his orders: He had six months to build a base for 1,000 soldiers on NATO¡¯s eastern frontier.
He and about 200 troops from France, Belgium and the Netherlands are now busy leveling a hilltop in the Romanian region of Transylvania. ¡°Our due date is before the first frost,¡± Torrent, who leads the engineer task force, said from the base near Cincu, about 260 kilometers (162 miles) north of Bucharest by road. ¡°It¡¯s a sign of solidarity. An alliance needs to be tangible.¡±
As Western powers race to confront the threat posed by Vladimir Putin, Russia¡¯s war on its neighbor has answered a fundamental question that NATO states have been asking for years: whether older members like the U.S., France and Germany will fight for less wealthy ex-communist allies if they¡¯re attacked.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.