Pentagon chief says US troops will remain in Romania

WASHINGTON

The US troops will remain in Romania but adjustments will be made to their rotation structure, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said on Friday.

"There will remain troops in Romania, but there will be some change in how we rotate them and how many we rotate," Hegseth told reporters at the White House, along with President Donald Trump.

Trump has dismissed suggestions that the Pentagon acted independently of the White House in deciding to withdraw a number of US troops from Romania, insisting the move was part of a broader repositioning rather than a reduction of America’s military presence in Europe.

Asked by a reporter about the decision — which appeared to contradict his earlier statement that he would not withdraw US forces from Europe — Trump said the Pentagon does "not ignore anything that I say."

"What they do ... we make changes ...we move people around," Trump said, then invited Hegseth to elaborate.

"No. Nothing was uncoordinated with the White House," Hegseth replied.

He said the US relations with Romania is "very good."

"We've coordinated all this with (NATO) Secretary-General (Mark) Rutte, with throughout EUCOM, throughout our allies. Everyone was notified in advance," Hegseth added.

Last month, Romania's Defense Ministry said the US will reduce its presence in some eastern flank countries, including Romania, after NATO allies were formally informed about the decision.

Some US lawmakers criticized the Pentagon’s decision to scale back US troop levels in Romania, calling the move "uncoordinated and directly at odds" with Trump’s strategy.