 The Kremlin says that the deployment of additional United States troops in Eastern Europe is escalating tensions in the region, and this is after Washington said it would send 3,000 extra troops to Poland and Romania. Russia has amassed tens of thousands of troops near the borders of Ukraine, demanding that the United States and NATO promise not to allow Kyiv to join the Western military bloc, but deny any plans to invade its neighbor. The White House said extra troops will shield Eastern Europe this week from a potential spillover from the Ukrainian crisis.