THE European Union authorised the United States, Canada and Norway to join its Military Mobility project today – allowing their troops “unhindered” movement within the bloc.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said the move would “make EU defence more efficient and … strengthen our security” by speeding up the transfer of armies across the continent. The US has over 70,000 soldiers stationed in Europe and is currently leading nearly 30,000 allied troops in the Defender Europe 2021 military manoeuvres along Russia’s borders from the Baltic to the Black Sea.

The decision is likely to be seen as a threat by Russia, coming the same day that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy asked visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to speed up Kiev’s integration into Nato and the EU.