ASSOCIATION OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY

Army operations in Europe and Africa will now fall under a new command called U.S. Army Europe and Africa, the service announced.

The move consolidates Army Europe and Army Africa into one command that will serve as the Army service component command for U.S. European Command and U.S. Africa Command. It will be led by Gen. Christopher Cavoli, the Army Europe commander since January 2018 who was approved by the Senate for a fourth star and this new assignment on Sept. 30.

The Army’s 2nd Cavalry Regiment is expected to continue playing a key role in Europe even as the Pentagon carries out a plan to bring the Stryker unit home to the U.S. 

Speaking Oct. 20 at the Atlantic Council, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said that after talks with his counterparts in Romania and Bulgaria as well as the Baltic States, “there is now the real opportunity of keeping the 2nd Cavalry Regiment forward in some of these countries on an enduring basis.”

Seven years after it was deactivated, the Army’s storied V Corps was reactivated Oct. 16 in a ceremony at Fort Knox, Kentucky.

Commanded by Lt. Gen. John Kolasheski, V Corps will be based at Fort Knox but have a forward-deployed command element in Poznan, Poland, as part of a shift in U.S. presence in Europe. The V Corps flag was unfurled in an Aug. 4 ceremony in Poland, and the first rotation of 200 soldiers is expected to arrive sometime in fiscal year 2021.

In total, the corps headquarters will have about 600 soldiers.

European allies remain vital to U.S. national security, but the U.S. military’s current posture in the region is “too small and without depth,” a former commander of U.S. Army Europe testified before Congress.

In testimony during a House Armed Services Committee hearing on the role of allies and partners in U.S. military strategy and operations, retired Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges reiterated his stance that the decision announced by DoD on July 29 to draw down 12,000 troops from Europe “is a mistake in my view.”

The commanding general of U.S. Army Europe will receive a fourth star and lead a newly consolidated command that will support operations in both Europe and Africa.

Lt. Gen. Christopher Cavoli, who has led Army Europe since January 2018, was confirmed by the Senate Sep. 30. He now will lead U.S. Army Europe-Africa and provide support to U.S. European Command and U.S. Africa Command.

Details on the consolidated command are still being finalized, according to an Army official.

Germany will continue to play an important role deterring Russia and maintaining U.S. and NATO readiness even after the U.S. moves troops out of the country, says a former U.S. Army Europe commander.

The V Corps flag was unfurled Aug. 4 in Poland in a ceremony marking the establishment of the corps’ forward command post and the promotion of incoming corps commander Lt. Gen. John Kolasheski.

Deactivated in 2013 in Wiesbaden, Germany, the storied V Corps will be based at Fort Knox, Kentucky, but have a forward-deployed command element in Poland as part of a shift in U.S. presence in Europe. The first rotation of 200 U.S. soldiers is expected to arrive in fiscal 2021.

Army Chief of Staff Gen. James McConville was in Poland on Aug. 4 to preside over the ceremonies. 

The nearly 4,500 soldiers of the 2nd Cavalry Regiment will return to the U.S. as part of a sweeping reduction in the number of U.S. troops stationed in Germany. 

Speaking at a July 29 press briefing, Defense Secretary Mark Esper said other Stryker brigade combat teams will begin “continuous rotations farther east in the Black Sea region to enhance deterrence and reassure allies along NATO’s southeastern flank” as part of the changes. 

Some moves could begin within weeks, Esper said.

U.S. Army Europe is in “a pretty healthy place” despite challenges brought on by the global COVID-19 pandemic, and the command is already planning for Defender-Europe 2021, a top general said. 

“We’ve been able to work with our host nations to continue to flow personnel into and out of Europe,” Brig. Gen. Sean Bernabe, deputy commanding general of Army Europe, said during a virtual panel hosted by Defense News on July 9.  

The U.S. Army faces an “extraordinary time” as it rebuilds readiness, modernizes capabilities, faces a global pandemic and drives for long overdue changes in cultural and racial issues, Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy said July 13 in remarks at Britain’s Royal United Services Institute.