NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said on Friday that the presence of American troops in Romania showed the United States‘ commitment to the security of Europe, as more soldiers arrived at an airbase, according to Reuters.
NATO Secretary General visited the Mihail Kogălniceanu Military Base (MK) in Romania to greet Allied deployments to the security of Romania and the Black Sea Region.
“We continue to reinforce our eastern flank,” Stoltenberg said, stressing that NATO’s actions were defensive.
In a joint press conference with the President of Romania Klaus Iohannis, the Secretary General thanked Romania for its significant contributions to the Alliance.
Stoltenberg praised contributions from Germany, Italy and Spain to help secure the airspace over the Black Sea region and welcomed the rapid deployment of one thousand additional troops from the United States, currently ongoing, which will bring the total of US service members operating from MK airbase to almost two thousands, according to a press release.
In recent days, NATO Allies have made announcements to deploy additional forces and assets to the eastern flank of the Alliance, from the Baltic to the Black Sea region.
Stoltenberg stated that at their meeting next week, NATO Defence Ministers will discuss how to further strengthen NATO’s presence, including with new battlegroups. In this regard, the Secretary General welcomed France’s offer to lead a multinational battlegroup in Romania.
“With three Allies bordering the Black Sea, as well partners Ukraine and Georgia, security in the region is of vital strategic importance to NATO,” the Secretary General said.
The Secretary General reiterated the Alliance’s support for dialogue and its invitation to Russia to meet again in the North Atlantic Council.
Stoltenberg insisted that NATO would not compromise on the core principles of national sovereignty and NATO’s ability to protect all Allies: “there will never be first class and second class Allies in NATO”, he said, “there are only NATO Allies. United as one.”