Lieutenant General Donald M. Campbell has been announced as the new head of the US army in Europe on 10 January. The new base of the US army will be in the German city of Wiesbaden and Campbell announced that it will reduce the US force in Europe from 40 to 30,000 troops.
Campbell replaced Lieutenant General Mark Hertling, who according to Deutsche Welle, his mute departure fuelled rumours that he opposed to the governmental reduction plan. The new head of US army in Europe will further reduce the number of US troops in Europe, which has steadily shrunk since the end of the Cold War.
Commander of the US European Command, Admiral James Stavridis said Campbell’s appointment and USAREUR’s headquarters move to Wiesbaden symbolised the “US commitment to Europe” sought by US President Barack Obama. Stavridis announced Campbell’s three main tasks, which are: (i) continued assistance to forces in Afghanistan after 2014; (ii) continued alliance with European partner forces; (iii) and new ways to apply innovative techniques such as cyber-operations and missile defense. US army in Europe is responsible for military cooperation with 51 countries across Europe, as far afield as Israel.
On his side, Campbell underlined that the main challenge for USAREUR would be to build upon gains with NATO partners in a time of dwindling resources. “We are in the process of deactivating two long-storied brigades, and we are reducing our garrison footprint across Europe. This transition makes us leaner, better organised, and more agile.” In detail, USAREUR is poised to inactivate two of Europe’s four Army brigades, starting with the 170th Infantry Brigade in Baumholder.
Overall, at the end of cold war US troops in Europe accounted approximately to 200,000. While soldiers used to be in hundreds US facilities during the 1980s, they’ll be stationed at seven remaining communities by 2015.
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Karafillis Giannoulis
Journalist at New Europe