Biden will move U.S. troops to Eastern Europe "in the near term"

President Biden said on Friday he plans to move U.S. troops to Eastern European and NATO countries “in the near term.”

Driving the news: “Not too many” U.S. troops, Biden added in remarks to reporters at Joint Base Andrew upon returning from a trip to Pennsylvania. 

• The Pentagon announced earlier this week that 8,500 U.S. troops have been placed on "heightened preparedness to deploy" to assist NATO if necessary.

Of note: The president told reporters on Tuesday that he does not foresee U.S. troops moving into Ukraine.