The United States has begun downsizing its military presence in Europe, Romania’s defense ministry confirmed Wednesday.
The Romanian defense ministry said in a statement that Bucharest and other allies “have been informed about the United States’ decision to downsize American troops in Europe,” describing it as part of a broader reassessment of U.S. global force posture.
The Romanian statement said the decision affects elements of a U.S. brigade whose rotations across Europe will cease, including troops stationed at Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base, a key hub for NATO operations on the Black Sea.
Roughly 1,000 American soldiers will remain in Romania, the ministry said, emphasizing that they will continue to “contribute to deterrence of any threats and represent a guarantee of the U.S. commitment to regional security.”
This marks the first official acknowledgment from a NATO ally that Washington is scaling back forces on the continent. The move follows a shift in Washington’s strategic priorities announced in February by Donald Trump’s administration, which has been reviewing deployments in Europe amid calls to redirect resources toward the Indo-Pacific.
The Pentagon and U.S. European Command have not yet publicly detailed the scope or timing of the reductions.
The Mihail Kogălniceanu base has served as a key transit point for U.S. and allied troops reinforcing the alliance’s eastern defenses. At the height of the buildup, several thousand U.S. soldiers rotated through Romania and Poland as part of NATO’s deterrence mission.
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