The US military is relocating almost 1,000 soldiers, including tanks and military vehicles, from their location in Vilseck in the Upper Palatinate to Romania. Some of the forces belonging to the 2nd Cavalry Regiment had already left, Commander Joe Ewers said on Wednesday. The other soldiers should be on their way within the next few days. The US Department of Defense announced the move last week. The measure is intended to strengthen the NATO alliance – and above all the NATO eastern flank. The focus of the mission is on training, emphasized Ewers. The US soldiers would be transferred at the invitation of the Romanian government and should stay as long as they are welcome and the mission requires it. “We stand shoulder to shoulder with the Romanian army.”
The US Army maintains its largest base in Europe in Grafenwoehr (Neustadt an der Waldnaab district) and neighboring Vilseck (Amberg-Sulzbach district). According to a spokesman, around 12,000 soldiers are currently stationed there. The Hohenfels and Garmisch locations also belong to the Garrison Bavaria Grafenwöhr. Founded in 1836, the 2nd Cavalry Regiment is said to be the longest actively serving cavalry regiment in the US Army and today functions, among other things, as a rapidly deployable force to strengthen ground forces.