U.S. Army troops deployed to the U.S.-Mexico border line up to receive a Thanksgiving meal at a base in 2018. About 2,300 active-duty troops are deployed to the southwest border, down from 5,900 in November. | Tamir Kalifa/Getty Images Defense 'Several thousand' more troops preparing to deploy to the border, Shanahan says

The Pentagon is preparing to send "several thousand" more troops to the southern border following a request from the Department of Homeland Security, Acting Defense Secretary Pat Shanahan said today.

The military is identifying units to meet the request and expects them to deploy soon, Shanahan's spokesman later added.


“Most recently DHS has asked us to support them in additional concertina wire and then expanded surveillance capability, and we’ve responded with, you know, here’s how many people it would take” to meet the request, Shanahan told reporters at the Pentagon today.

Asked how many troops would be required to fill that latest DHS request, Shanahan said, “several thousand, and I’ll kind of leave it at that number.”

The military is "currently sourcing the units involved and there will be an increase of a few thousand troops," Shanahan's spokesman, Lt. Col. Joe Buccino, added in a statement. "We will provide more clarity on the numbers when we have it.”

About 2,300 active-duty troops are deployed to the southwest border, down from 5,900 in November. The mission was extended to Sept. 30 this month. About 3,600 active-duty troops returned to their home stations late last year after placing barriers such as concertina wire.

It wasn't clear whether any of the additional troops could be from the National Guard. Besides the active-duty contingent, about 2,200 National Guard personnel are on the border.

All the troops are in “a support role” to civilian authorities, Shanahan stressed. “It’s not about undertaking a law enforcement position.”