American General Ben Hodges, former chief of US Army Forces in Europe, stated on Thursday evening that the Trump Administration is unpredictable and cannot rule out the scenario in which the US will withdraw more troops from European territory. Additionally, he warned Romania that if Russia attacks NATO, it will bomb the port of Constanța and civilian targets.
American General Ben Hodges spoke in an interview broadcasted on Thursday evening by Antena 3 about the possibility of reducing American troops in Europe and, implicitly, in Romania.
Anything is possible with Trump in the White House
"It's hard to know for sure what this administration intends to do (…) Logically, it doesn't make sense to reduce what is already a fairly small presence. But this administration talks about the Indo-Pacific region and a greater priority there. We don't have much in Europe that could be moved to the Pacific, so it's not about redirecting resources," stated the American general.
He does not rule out the possibility that, "in the coming months," we may witness "a process in which the size of the US army will be reduced to fund air and maritime power in the Pacific."
"If this happens, then a reduction in the size of the US army and therefore a reduction in the presence of the US army in Europe could be observed. But, honestly, this administration has not been very predictable," Hodges further stated.
Europe Doesn't Trust
He believes that, "even if the United States reduces its presence in Europe and even if the United States is no longer considered a support point, the economies, populations, and armies of all our European friends, plus Canada and the United Kingdom, far exceed those of Russia."
"That is, Russia is not even close. Therefore, what Europe truly lacks is not industrial capacity or military capability. It lacks self-confidence. It lacks the political will to say, 'Enough!'" added the American general.
Where Russia Will Strike if It Attacks NATO
In the event that Russia decides to attack a NATO country, the former chief of US Army Forces in Europe warns that the port of Constanța will be targeted.
"You should assume, Romanians should assume that, once Russia makes the terrible decision to attack any NATO country, that means it has already decided to launch hundreds of drones, missiles, and bombs on Constanța and any maritime port, on transport infrastructure, on civilian targets in Romania, as well as in other places, as they did against Ukraine.
Meaning, it's clear that they have no respect for international law. They are happy to hit civilian targets to achieve their goal. So, I think Romania needs to carefully analyze if its critical transport nodes are adequately protected against cyber attacks, as well as against missiles and drones," added Ben Hodges.