US to withdraw some troops from NATO's eastern flank, Romania says

By Luiza Ilie

BUCHAREST (Reuters) -The United States plans to cut the number of troops stationed on Europe's eastern flank, including soldiers who were to be stationed at Romania's Mihail Kogalniceanu air base, Romania's defence ministry said on Wednesday.

The ministry said the decision was expected given changes in Washington's priorities, and that roughly 1,000 U.S. troops would continue to be stationed in Romania. It did not specify how many U.S. troops would be withdrawn.

Washington's European allies have been told previously by the administration of President Donald Trump that they will need to take more responsibility for their own security as the United States focuses more on its own borders and the Indo-Pacific region.

"The American decision is to stop the rotation in Europe of a brigade that had elements in several NATO countries," the defence ministry said.

NATO SAYS ALLIANCE IN CLOSE CONTACT

Defence Minister Ionut Mosteanu told a news conference that the brigade had troops in Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary and Slovakia.

"The decision also took into account that NATO has consolidated its presence and activity on the eastern flank which enables the United States to adjust its military posture in the region," the ministry said.

A NATO official said the alliance was in close contact about the deployment of its forces, adding that adjustments to U.S. deployments were not unusual.

Italian Defence Minister Guido Crosetto told Sky that the process of the United States shifting its focus had started under President Barack Obama. "The U.S. is concerned about competition with China, and Europe must guarantee its own defence," he said.

Despite worries on NATO's eastern flank about the potential scaling back of the U.S. presence in the region at a time when Russia continues to wage war in Ukraine, Trump said in September that Washington could increase its troop presence in Poland.

Polish Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz told a news conference that Warsaw had not received any information about a possible reduction of U.S. troops on its territory.

Mosteanu stressed that Bucharest's ties with Washington remained strong and that Romania was safe.

"The allied presence remains considerable in Romania, from U.S. troops to France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Portugal, North Macedonia," he said.

He also said Romania had received an advanced air defence system from the U.S. which will enhance the country's ability to protect itself against drones breaching its airspace.

(Reporting by Luiza Ilie in Bucharest, additional reporting by Alan Charlish in Warsaw, Andrew Gray and Lili Bayer in Brussels, Francesca Piscioneri in Rome; Editing by Toby Chopra and Alison Williams)