Yesterday (P)resident Biden issued an executive order calling up 3k reservists to active duty. The EO also authorized the call up of up to 450 IRR (individual ready reserve) troops. Those troops are expected to be used in support of Operation Atlantic Resolve, the multi-national support mission for (not in) Ukraine.
By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including sections 121 and 12304 of title 10, United States Code, I hereby determine that it is necessary to augment the active Armed Forces of the United States for the effective conduct of Operation Atlantic Resolve in and around the United States European Command’s area of responsibility. In furtherance of this operation, under the stated authority, I hereby authorize the Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of Homeland Security with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service in the Navy, under their respective jurisdictions, to order to active duty any units, and any individual members not assigned to a unit organized to serve as a unit of the Selected Reserve, or any member in the Individual Ready Reserve mobilization category and designated as essential under regulations prescribed by the Secretary concerned, not to exceed 3,000 total members at any one time, of whom not more than 450 may be members of the Individual Ready Reserve, as they deem necessary, and to terminate the service of those units and members ordered to active duty.
This order is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by any party against the United States, its departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or any other person.
JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
However, it isn’t the start of World War III, any kind of escalation or even a big deal (I mean, it is to those being called up, but steps have been taken to provide more support for those impacted.). The call-up of Reserve troops and units has been a regular feature of the US military dating back to the creation of the Army Reserve system in 1908. EOs with the same language have been used for each one of those call-ups since 1952. The Army Reserve, (the one I know most about, and I don’t feel like researching the other branches) has been called up for every conflict and contingency op since WWI.
Why isn’t a big deal you may well ask. Well, first it’s just the reserve. What do I mean by that? Simply put, under the current force structure, the reserves, with the exception of the Marine Corps, do not have any combat arms formations. In other words, the reserves are support personnel, intel analysts, mechanics, clerks and the like. Had the EO included the National Guard, the reserve component that includes combat arms, I might have been concerned.
Second, shortly after the russian invasion kicked off, two brigade combat teams were deployed to the EUCOM area of operations in support of Atlantic Resolve. The troops being mobbed aren’t combat arms troops, and I suppose that relates to the Guard comment above.
Third, recruiting and retention across the branches sucks. I’m going to speculate a bit here, and say the call-ups are going to back-fill some support positions that are being vacated as troops do not re-up at the end of their contracts.
My SWAG is that the vast majority of those being called up are in some sort of logistics or transportation MOS/Specialty. They are likely replacing active duty troops who are rotating home.