No, U.S. Army forces aren’t in Ukraine
If your time is short
- U.S. Army members aren’t in Ukraine, according to the Department of Defense.
- The Pentagon relocated National Guard members in February who were training Ukrainian military members in February.
On Feb. 12, news broke that the Pentagon ordered U.S. troops stationed in Ukraine to leave the country due to the impending Russian invasion. But a recent Facebook post claims American troops are still there.
“End of the road for Putin!” an Aug. 17 Facebook post says. “US Army in Ukraine!”
This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Facebook.)
Garron Garn, a U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant colonel and a Defense Department spokesperson, told PolitiFact that this post isn’t accurate.
“There are no military forces in Ukraine,” he said.
The post includes a 10-minute video in which an unseen, automated-sounding narrator discusses the war but offers no further explanation about the claim that U.S. troops are in Ukraine and provides no evidence to support it.
There were 160 Florida National Guard troops training Ukraine’s military when Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin temporarily relocated them to Europe in February. And 3,000 more American troops from the 82nd Airborne were also deployed to Europe from Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
The National Guard has continued to support Ukrainian soldiers remotely, according to the Army. For example, a June article on the Army’s website shares how a Ukrainian soldier called a member of the Washington Army National Guard for help with a failed anti-tank missile.
But we rate claims that U.S. Army forces are stationed in Ukraine False.
Our Sources
Facebook post, Aug. 17, 2022
U.S. Army, National Guard Supports Armed Forces of Ukraine, June 8, 2022
CNBC, Pentagon orders departure of U.S. troops in Ukraine as Russia crisis escalates, Feb. 12, 2022
National Guard, More U.S. troops deploying to Europe, Guard leaving Ukraine, Feb. 15, 2022
Email interview with Lt. Col. Garron Garn, Department of Defense spokesperson, Aug. 23, 2022
