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The reason the Easterlings were even near Erebor was because of Sauron. Like most Humans, the Easterlings were most susceptible to tribalism and inter-tribe squabbling and war, taking land and riches from each other until a powerful lord (like Genghis Khan) could establish hegemony and unite all the tribes into a single army. Sauron could be that powerful lord. In its absence, the Easterlings would "melt away" back to their own lands and take up their squabbles where they had left them.
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