Alaska National Guard planning deployment to US border with Mexico

The Alaska Army National Guard plans to deploy to the U.S. border with Mexico.

“The Alaska Army National Guard has been notified by the National Guard Bureau that it is authorized to begin training in preparation for early mobilization in support of the Commonwealth’s southwest border mission. [fiscal] 2025,” Alaska National Guard Maj. Gen. Torrence Sachs said in a press release emailed to The Hill on Thursday.

“This memo directs the Alaska Army National Guard General Support Aviation Battalion to prepare to deploy two LUH-72 Lakota helicopters and a 20-man Guard consisting of aircrews, maintenance specialists, and other support personnel. instructions,” the statement continued.

The announcement also said that “subject to final decisions” by the Secretary of Defense and the Department of the Army, “the force will be placed on formal alert and mobilization.”

The announcement comes amid a dispute between the federal government and the state of Texas over how to handle the border. Texas began installing razor wire along its border with Mexico last year. The Biden administration has opposed the move, arguing that Texas does not have the authority to install power lines.

The Supreme Court ruled last month that Border Patrol agents could remove the wires, with the government arguing that the wires prevented them from doing their jobs. Despite the country’s Supreme Court’s ruling, the Texas National Guard appears to still be installing wires.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) recently claimed that the installation of wire at a park in the border town of Eagle Pass has slowed the flow of migrants.

“The area that occupied this park in Eagle Pass, Texas, where we installed razor wire, used to have 3,000 or 4,000 people a day crossing that area,” Abbott told Fox News. He made the claim in an interview on Sunday Morning Futures. ”

“Over the past three days, on average, only three people have crossed the area. The important thing is to show that we can secure the border if we continue to resist. Joe Biden should not stop that.” he continued.