NATO moves headquarters from Naples closer to Russia - to Romania
NATO plans to relocate its headquarters from Naples to Romania. "The Alliance continues to hone its ability to respond to Russia's actions in Ukraine," Admiral Mark E. Ferguson III said on Tuesday, according to the Associated Press.
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For 12 days in June, the command headquarters will move from Naples to the Cincu military base in the highlands of central Romania to support NATO maneuvers involving 1000 troops from 21 NATO countries, the admiral said.
“This move will be the first time that a joint NATO force has been headquartered in Romania,” Ferguson said in Bucharest during a two-day visit.
About 350 personnel will test their ability to command and control a multinational exercise. The facility in southern Italy will oversee other missions, such as KFOR forces in Kosovo.
“This headquarters maneuver will fully test the performance of my personnel by transferring control between Naples and Romania,” Admiral Ferguson said.
"We are dealing with the introduction of advanced missile systems into Crimea by the Russians and the deployment of advanced fighter aircraft and increased forces on the peninsula that we believe threaten the security of the Black Sea," he told reporters.
Cincu is the largest Romanian military base, 180 km northwest of Bucharest.
At the same time, when NATO headquarters moves from Naples to Romania, the military alliance will conduct exercises in Poland, the Baltic countries, the Baltic and the Black Sea.
NATO is moving its headquarters from Naples to Romania, closer to Russia.