150 guys won’t be able to defend against a massive Soviet tank attack. We have taken hundreds of thousands of troops out of Europe, Germany, etc. since the First Gulf War
There isn’t going to be a massive tank attack by Russia right now. The Russian economy is tanking and Putin is in a weak position economically.
The point of this deployment is for the U. S. Army to set up shop in Poland and the former USSR. U. S. Army units deployed on the ground in the FSU is part of the bill Putin will pay for abusing his neighbors.
Notice that this isn’t a unit of mess cooks sent to Lithuania. A U. S. Army airborne infantry company is a credible tripwire and all that is required right now. Other companies will rotate in and gain experience in the region over the next 7 months. I serious doubt Putin wants to risk nuclear war engaging elite U. S. Army troops.
I am quiet familiar with what goes on in Europe and the Soviets. I spent 10 of my 20 years in the military in Germany. One tour I spent patrolling directly along the old East-West German border. My last tour was with the 3d Armored Division in Frankfurt. It was one of the main division responsible for defending Europe. So, I am familiar with everything that went on then and what goes on now. I sat in many a briefing and spent tons of hours in the field preparing for the Red Hord coming across the border.
PS to your post. Your said “tripwire”. That is exactly what units on the border were. We were THE early warning system if the Soviets came across. We were told our life expectancy was about 8-10 seconds if they decided to come. Just long enough to grab the quick phone to our higher HQ and scream “here they come” and then be blown to pieces by incoming.