NATO on Wednesday said it had been informed in advance about the United States’ plans to reduce some of its troops stationed on the alliance’s eastern flank.
The alliance described the move as an “adjustment” and insisted there was nothing “unusual” about it.
A NATO official said that Washington’s commitment to the alliance remains “clear” and that its military presence in Europe continues to be substantial.
The official said that even with this adjustment, the U.S. force posture in Europe remained larger than it had been for many years, with far more U.S. forces stationed on the continent than before 2022.
The United States is expected to announce troop drawdowns in Europe as part of a broader review of its global military deployments. However, an official announcement has not yet been made.
Romania’s defence ministry offered the first confirmation of the scale-down on Wednesday. It said Washington would halt the rotation of a brigade that included units deployed across several NATO countries — Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, and Hungary.
The prospect of a US troop reduction has unsettled NATO allies, amid concerns that Russia could target a member nation in the coming years if the war in Ukraine slows down.
However, NATO sought to ease those fears, emphasising that its defence readiness and coordination remain strong.
The official reiterated that the U.S. commitment to NATO was clear, adding that the alliance had robust defence plans in place and that efforts were underway to ensure the maintenance of the right forces and capabilities to deter potential aggression and provide for collective defence.