American conservatives reportedly lobby Trump administration to withdraw troops from Romania
Two American conservative magazines have called on the Trump administration to withdraw its troops from the Kogălniceanu Base in Romania, citing the "undemocratic" decision to block Călin Georgescu’s candidacy and the high cost incurred for the base.
The first article, published in The American Conservative, is titled “It’s Time to Cut Romania Off,” and is authored by Anthony J. Constantini. The author condemns Romania’s Constitutional Court for scrapping the 2024 presidential elections and banning Calin Georgescu from running again. He says that condemnations from the part of US vice president JD Vance are a good first step, but that “the Trump administration should go further by using this opportunity to draw a firm line in the sand by announcing it is pulling troops and support from Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base.”
Days later, another article in conservative website The National Interest argued that “resetting” the US' relationship with Romania would be a first step in reforming NATO. Similar to the first article, the author also refers to far-right pro-Russian candidate Calin Georgescu being barred from running for president. Moreover, he argues that the Romanian Constitutional Court acted with approval from the Biden administration.
“Withdrawing troops from Romania would rattle NATO, yes, but it would demonstrate American resolve and encourage Europeans to do more than just talk about strategic autonomy. This action could even be used as a bargaining chip to incentivize Russia to cease fighting in Ukraine as Moscow has long complained of NATO troops moving ever eastward,” author Michael Hall says.
The two articles may be the prelude of a major shift in relations between the United States and Romania. In an interview for HotNews, security expert Iulia Joja says that the US may indeed withdraw troops from the base.
"Two articles within a few days suggest that this is a campaign, and if we analyze it, we see an overlap in themes, as it is about the Kogălniceanu base. This, despite the fact that we could have been talking about another base, such as the one in Deveselu," explained Iulia Joja, an adjunct professor at Georgetown and George Washington universities.
Moreover, in both cases, there is a direct link between either the author or the publisher of the magazine and Russia. The former CEO of the Center for the National Interest, Dimitri Simes, was born in Moscow and, according to the American press, has maintained ties with Russia. The author of the article in The American Conservative, Anthony J. Constantini, studied in Vienna and holds a master's degree in arms control and strategic studies from Saint Petersburg State University.
Russia has long complained over the existence of the Kogălniceanu base, and the withdrawal decision could be in line with the Trump administration’s strategy of extreme appeasement of Putin.
"For Russia, a military base - one of NATO’s largest military bases - where Western soldiers can be stationed, whether they are American, French, British, or German, is a real problem," Joja says.
"We must consider that this is not a coincidence, not only in terms of the authors and publications with ties to Russia. And that it is no coincidence that the rhetoric of the Trump administration regarding the entire issue of the eastern flank, European security, and Ukraine overlaps with Russia’s interests," the expert further stated. "Russian intelligence would have every reason to push for a policy that prevents, even with false data, the expansion of the Kogălniceanu military base," she concludes.
Closing the base would be in direct opposition to an earlier statement from US special envoy Keith Kellogg. In February, he reportedly told Romanian foreign minister Emil Hurezeanu that the bases in Romania would be maintained and even expanded.
As of February 2025, Romania has around 5,000 foreign soldiers on its territory, of which only 1,500 are American, spread between the Kogălniceanu, Deveselu, and Câmpia Turzii bases. The first base is the largest, hosting around 1,000 soldiers. By comparison, Poland has about 10,000 US soldiers on its national territory.
(Photo source: Inquam Photos/George Calin)
