US troops to stay in Estonia – for now

Estonia’s defence ministry said on Thursday that US troops will remain stationed in the country, a reassuring signal following Washington’s annoucement earlier this week it will scale back deployments in Romania and neighboring countries.

“We welcome the US decision to continue its troop presence in Estonia,” Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur said in a statement.  Around 150 US troops are currently stationed in Tapa and southern Estonia, alongside other NATO allies.

Rather than planning a withdrawal, Pevkur said Tallinn and Washington are working to “strengthen” the American military presence in the region, with Estonia ready to make additional investments in infrastructure to support it.

Questions over US military commitment

His comments come a day after the US confirmed it would reduce its footprint in Romania and neighbouring countries, fuelling speculation about the future of its military posture in Europe.

The announcement has prompted fresh questions as allies await the outcome of the Trump administration’s Global Posture Review, due later this autumn. The assessment could see the US shift resources away from Europe to focus more on the Indo-Pacific region – a prospect that has unsettled NATO members bordering Russia and Belarus, where drone incursions have heightened regional tension.

However, sources told Euractiv that the recent troop adjustments are not directly linked to the ongoing review, suggesting that further changes could still follow.

In a communiqué on Wednesday, US European Command said that troops currently stationed in Romania will return to Kentucky as planned and simply not be replaced.

“This is not an American withdrawal … rather this is a positive sign of increased European capability and responsibility,” the communiqué reads. It remains unclear whether other NATO countries will replace the departing US personnel.

NATO downplays US drawdown

Romania’s defence minister on Wednesday confirmed the end of the rotation of a US brigade with elements in Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia, and Hungary, leaving around 1,000 American soldiers in the country.

A NATO official downplayed the decision, calling it routine. “Adjustments to US force posture are not unusual,” the official told Euractiv. “Even with this adjustment, the US force posture in Europe remains larger than it has been for many years, with many more US forces on the continent than before 2022,” the official added.

The United States currently maintains more than 80,000 troops in Europe — far above the level seen before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, though still well below the 300,000 it stationed on the continent at the height of the Cold War.

Eastern allies, however, continue to urge Washington to reinforce its presence rather than reduce it.

(cp, aw)