Next appointment NATO to focus on Eastern Europe protection, officials say

This week's meeting of NATO defence ministers in Brussels is expected to focus on the Alliance's next steps to strengthen its defence presence in Eastern Europe following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to NATO and US officials.

“will place meat in the bone” of a further NATO response, an American official said.

Discussions, in part, will focus on whether additional steps are needed to strengthen NATO's reaction forces and perhaps add more troops to the mix. However, decisions have yet to be made about which other tasks would receive the reaction force, the official said.

There are expected to be some discussions on adding more forces under NATO's flag to the reaction force and deployment of some command and control, including some US data, possibly under the NATO flag, according to a US official and also NATO official.

It is also expected to discuss the air defence capabilities on the east wing and whether there is actually enough there. This may involve everything, by adding more skills, to the movement of things already there under a NATO flag.

White House officials are also in early discussions about President Joe Biden's visit to Europe soon amid the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine, according to numerous sources known with the planning.

The trip would come after visits by several top aides, including Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. No trip has been finalised or proclaimed, CNN broadcast.