Hundreds of American soldiers to come to Romania equipped with tanks, fighting vehicles, helicopters

US Army Europe troops will arrive from Poland at the end of this February together with military equipment at the Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base in Constanta County as part of the US engagement to secure NATO's eastern flank under Operation Atlantic Resolve, according to a press statement released by the Romanian Defence Ministry (MApN) on Wednesday. The about 500 US troops are part of the 16th Infantry Regiment of the 1st Infantry Division and have M1 Abrams Tanks and M2 Bradley infantry fighting vehicles. They will participate this year in multinational exercises alongside soldiers of the Romanian Land Forces. About 100 troops serving with the 1st Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division are also expected at the base, accompanied by CH-47 Chinook, AH-64 Appache, UH-60, and HH-60 Black Hawk helicopters. They will carry out exercises as well as joint and multinational training together with the Romanian Air Force. At the same time, 572nd Helicopter Squadron of the Kogalniceanu Base will provide CASEVAC (Casuality Evacuation) flying an IAR 330 PUMA helicopter equipped and trained for such type of mission. It is also worth mentioning that the 57th Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base will also provide some of the personnel that will join a Romanian Air Force detachment that will be made available to the UN for the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) mission starting this October. Besides Romania, the combat aviation brigade have deployed for the time being troops and aviation equipment to Germany, Latvia and Poland. The US troops will stay in Romania for nine months, after which they will be replaced by other combat units, thus ensuring a constant presence in Europe based on continuous rotation. "The deployment to Romania develops the Romanian-American security co-operation, providing joint training opportunities that will enhance the capacities of NATO allies and partners, improve the interoperability of the Romanian Armed Forces involved in the joint activities, and the overall capacity to respond to potential crises. The development of the Romanian-American strategic partnership represents a major objective taken up at national level on both at the political and the military level. The rotation of the US forces on the national soil and in the Black Sea zone, as well as the support provided by the US to the upgrading of Romania's national defence capabilities have an essential role in the current security context in Romania's geographical area," according to MApN. AGERPRES (RO - author: Cristian Lupascu, editor: Florin Marin; EN - author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Adina Panaitescu)