US military base in Romania to become permanent

[nbruno322]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hnPsInQCbtn5dEKa5Tnu5GixcNRgD9BGSFJG0


US military base in Romania to become permanent

(AP) – 6 hours ago

BUCHAREST, Romania — A U.S. army official in Romania says an American military base near the Black Sea port of Constanta will become a permanent facility in the spring and be jointly used with Romanian forces.

Lt. Col. Daniel Herrigstad says the U.S. government invested $48 million to modernize the base.

Herrigstad told the news agency Agerpres on Friday that the base would initially host up to 1,700 U.S. and Romanian soldiers.

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden visited Romania on Thursday to discuss the new missile defense system, and thanked Romania's President Traian Basescu for "embracing" the new proposal.

It is unclear what role, if any, Romania will play in the revamped U.S. missile shield.

[squarepusher]

in b4 TGGRV

[frasu]

Interesting...
In the meantime, the prime minister of Romania was ousted with less than a month to the Presidential elections there.


BUCHAREST, Romania – Romania's government fell Tuesday in a confidence vote in Parliament, with lawmakers saying it has failed to improve the economy after it went into recession following three years of growth.
[...]
It was the first time Parliament had dismissed a government since communism ended in 1989.

A very strange move, considering that the proposed replacement was chief adviser at International Monetary Fund and a protégé of the governor of the National Bank of Romania (the central bank)


Romania's powerful opposition, united behind a different candidate, has made it clear it would not back the former central banker in his bid to become prime minister, in a tactical game ahead of a Nov. 22 presidential election.
[...]
Pending the review, Bucharest is counting on disbursement of a third tranche, worth 1.5 billion euros ($2.25 billion), of an IMF-led financial package worth 20 billion euros.

(source (http://www.forbes.com/feeds/afx/2009/10/23/afx7038055.html))

[denison]

No US mercenary base will be permanent after the dollar collapses. Another waste of taxpayer money. :rolleyes: