The US Opens Massive Expansion of Black Sea Base in Romania, Moves Tens of Thousands of Troops In

[happyg]

Conveniently, the US Military just opened a base in Romania, on the Black Sea, in close proximity to the Ukraine.  Of course, this has nothing to do with the escalating tensions in that former Soviet Republic – it is just a place to move tens of thousands of troops leaving Afghanistan.

Back in late December, the USM started expanding a small installation there, allowing it to compensate a massive influx of personnel.  On February 28, there was a ribbon-cutting ceremony, and the new facilities were officially opened.

The base, “Mihail Kogalniceanu,” which is alleged to have been used for the CIA’s “extraordinary rendition” program, is situated close to the Black Sea.  US General John O’Conner, who is responsible for logistical affairs, said that the base will operate as a center for transportation of US forces.

At the inagural ceremony, the General added that 20,000 to 30,000 troops will soon be transferred there from Afghanistan.

From IRIB:
❝
Based on evidences, the US intends to pull out the majority of its forces from Afghanistan, especially since the Washington-Kabul security pact is yet to be signed and Barack Obama has said that he will pull out all of US troopers from Afghanistan in case of continued refusal of the Afghan President, Hamid Karzai, to sign the bilateral security agreement. Meanwhile, given that there was a need for a military base en route Europe for pull out of US forces from Afghanistan, the US administration persuaded the Romanian government to open a new base in this country. The US, in addition to this military base in Romania, has started the construction of another military base in this East European country to deploy the US and NATO anti-missile system. This second military base in Romania will become operational by the end of 2015. In fact, the US will invest $134 million in this base. This military base will remain under the command of Romania and will host a total of 500 soldiers, including 200 US troopers.

Romania is one of the East European countries which have joined NATO. This country in addition to other East European countries, especially Bulgaria and Poland, are interested in developing military relations with the US, which is seemingly due to two reasons. Firstly, the historical fear of these countries from Russia has led them to join NATO and to make efforts to establish military relations with the US, as NATO’s main member state. Secondly, it seems that countries such as Romania hope to benefit from the US foreign military assistance in return for handing over military bases to the US.

While the US, in current juncture in time, uses its new military base for transportation of troopers to Europe, it will certainly consider new applications for this base following the completion of this mission. The important point is the geographical position of this military base in Romania, which is situated next to the Black Sea and therefore leads to US planes’ and military forces’ access to this sea. Romania is the neighboring country of Ukraine, and the Crimean Peninsula is not far from the Romanian coastlines.


This clearly indicates that the US is making preparations for a possible open conflict with Russia.  These are not invasion numbers, but they are sufficient for sending in troops to support the terrorist regime in Kiev.

http://www.dailystormer.com/the-us-opens-massive-expansion-of-black-sea-base-in-romania-moves-tens-of-thousands-of-troops-in/

[Chieftain]

I'm not at all sure why we need 20,000 to 30,000 troops in Romania, especially if they are supposedly coming out of Afghanistan.  Makes no sense, and since this is another one of those obscure military blogs, I'm not surprised.  I've heard nothing about this anywhere else, so I will reserve judgement until I hear it from at least one other reputable source.

[happyg]

Hundreds of U.S. troops will deploy to Romania next year

The U.S. military will move hundreds of troops to Romania next year and set up a key logistical hub that will effectively replace the air base at Manas in Kyrgyzstan, a Pentagon official said Friday.

The Romanians have agreed to allow a small footprint of U.S. troops to use an existing airfield along the Black Sea coast. The Mihail Kogalniceanu air base in eastern Romania will serve as a major transit hub for the airlift effort to redeploy U.S. troops and cargo out of Afghanistan.

U.S. military officials say removing the roughly 51,000 troops currently deployed in Afghanistan by the end of 2014 will be a major logistical challenge.

The move comes after Kyrgyzstan ordered U.S. troops to leave Manas in 2009 after the U.S. balked at the Kyrgyz government’s demand to double the rent. The U.S. lease on the base expires in July 2014.

The deal with Romania was finalized at the Pentagon Friday during a meeting between Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Romanian Defense Minister Mircea Dusa. As a part of the agreement, the U.S. has agreed to give Romania permission to purchase 12 F-16 Fighting Falcons from Portugal. The U.S. will also provide F-16 training for Romanian pilots.

Romania has previously agreed to host an American-made anti-missile interceptor as part of the European missile defense system. That is expected to be operational by 2015.
http://www.armytimes.com/article/20131018/NEWS05/310180024/Hundreds-U-S-troops-will-deploy-Romania-next-year

[happyg]

US transit hub in Romania fully operational

By Matt Millham 

MK AIR BASE, Romania — A temporary U.S. base in Romania that will serve as the primary hub for American forces leaving Afghanistan officially reached its full operating capacity Friday.

Since Feb. 2, some 6,000 American servicemembers have transited through the center at Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base, located about 25 miles northwest of the Black Sea city of Constanta and about 2,500 miles northwest of Afghanistan.

“It’s an ideal location for us as far as capability,” Maj. Gen. John O’Connor, commander of the 21st Theater Sustainment Command said in a recent interview with Stars and Stripes.

The U.S. had already constructed 85 buildings capable of supporting roughly 1,500 personnel at Mihail Kogalniceanu – or MK Air Base – for previous missions, O’Connor said.

Beginning in late December, elements of the 21st expanded the infrastructure to accommodate up to 2,000 transiting troops and 400 military personnel who run the operation.

A ribbon cutting ceremony Friday in a processing tent built on a parking lot adjacent to the airstrip signaled that the base is ready to handle the full flow of troops in and out of Afghanistan.

The center replaces the transit center at Manas, Kyrgyzstan, which had processed hundreds of thousands of troops to and from the war beginning in the weeks after Sept. 11, 2001.

The Kyrgyz government last year declined to extend its lease on Manas, forcing the U.S. to find another location to stage its forces.

After previous threats by the Kyrgyz government to close the Manas operation, the U.S. started testing the possibility of shifting transit operations to Romania, O’Connor said. Some 20,000 U.S. troops from the United States and Germany transited through MK Air Base on their way to Afghanistan in the two years prior to the transit center’s opening in early February, he said. Those troop movements helped military planners decide how much additional infrastructure the Army needed to install at the base to handle the full flow of troops to and from Afghanistan.

The first flight of roughly 300 soldiers in the newly expanded MK transit center arrived Feb. 2.

On Friday, about 1,800 in-transit troops were bedded down in a living area a short drive from the processing center. Reporters who attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony didn’t see this portion of the base.

“It’s been really busy,” said Pfc. Bryan Orlando, a human resources specialist from Waterford, Calif., who helps process transiting personnel. “We’ve been getting a lot of flights.”

O’Connor said four C-17 transport planes and up to four commercial wide-body aircraft will ferry troops in and out of the center daily — about half going to Afghanistan, half home.

But for nearly three weeks after reaching its initial operating capacity in early February, only troops heading to the war transited through here. For about the last week, the flow has been going both ways.

“So we’re definitely seeing the op-tempo pick up,” Sgt. Bart Khan, a human resources specialist deployed here from Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington, said.

Construction of the additional tents and buildings to house and feed 2,000 transiting personnel, and contracts for cooks, trash and other base operations cost roughly $11 million, O’Connor said. The cost of running the base for the 10 months between now and the withdrawal of all combat troops from Afghanistan is estimated at between $18 million to $20 million, he said.

If the U.S. had had to build the entire base from scratch, O’Connor said, the cost likely would have exceeded $100 million.

The transit center’s primary purpose right now is to facilitate movement of personnel. But it is also on standby to handle equipment if other transportation routes, such as those from Afghanistan through Pakistan, are shut down or overwhelmed, O’Connor said.

The 400 personnel running the operation at MK are roughly a third as many as were running the base at Manas, O’Connor said.

However, Manas had other missions besides troop transport; it also hosted a fleet of refueling planes used to gas up military aircraft flying over Afghanistan, but that mission is also over.

The last KC-135 tanker landed at Manas on Feb. 24, after refueling A-10 Thunderbolt IIs and F-16 Fighting Falcons flying sorties over Afghanistan, according to the Air Force.
http://www.stripes.com/news/us-transit-hub-in-romania-fully-operational-1.270655

[Chieftain]

OK...just as I thought, the original article is wrong, and is more an effort to gain attention by the writer than to present accurate facts.  A transit hub is several degrees different than stationing 30,000 troops in Romania.

Moving on.....

 

[happyg]

US Opens Military Transit Hub in Romania

Marian Chiriac Bucharest

The Mihail Kogalniceanu airbase, near the Romanian Black Sea coast, on Friday became a primary hub for American forces leaving Afghanistan.

“It’s an ideal location for us as far as capability, and the base would act as a centre of gravity for the US drawdown,” Major-General John O’Connor, commander of the 21st Theatre Sustainment Command said after cutting the ribbon at the new centre.

"We anticipate 20 to 30,000 troops from Afghanistan to transit here in the course of this year," he added.



The Mihail Kogalniceanu base replaces the transit centre at Manas in Kyrgyzstan, which served hundreds of thousands of troops going to and from the Afghan war after September 11, 2001.

The cost of running the Kogalniceanu base for the next ten months until the withdrawal of all combat troops from Afghanistan is estimated at between $18 to 20 million, O’Connor said.

NATO member Romania is one of Washington’s strongest supporters among the ex-Communist countries of eastern Europe.

In October the installation of US missile interceptors began at the Deveselu military base, in southern Romania.

The interceptors are to be installed at Deveselu by 2015 as part of the second phase of the US-led project to build a missile shield in Europe – a scheme which is viewed with deep suspicion by Russia. The work at Deveselu involves an estimated investment of $400 million in the base.

Mihail Kogalniceanu airport became a major US military base in 2007.
http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/u-s-opens-military-transit-hub-in-romania?utm_source=Balkan+Insight+Newsletters&utm_campaign=aac2762511-BI_DAILY&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_4027db42dc-aac2762511-308284889