A Hungarian scholar doesn’t believe the Bondsteel base will be closed: “A troop reduction might happen, but withdrawal, no.”
Ferenc Németh, a doctoral researcher at Corvinus University in Budapest, in an article addressing the ambiguity of the American administration regarding the Western Balkans, doesn’t believe the “American boots” will leave Kosovo, let alone that Bondsteel camp will be closed.
“While a reduced American presence in KFOR may be possible, it is unlikely to mean the closure of Bondsteel Camp, the largest U.S. facility in the region, which provides Washington with a great geopolitical location in Europe. Even though American contributions to KFOR could easily be replaced by other allies (particularly Turkey), the absence of American boots on the ground—both practically and symbolically—would be felt and exploited by external powers.
The real danger is that the U.S., inadvertently, begins to dismantle the security and political architecture it has spent decades building and maintaining in the Western Balkans. Driven by Trump’s desire for quick successes and his engagement with local leaders, this could create cracks in that system, particularly in Kosovo and Bosnia and Herzegovina. These cracks would surely be used and exploited by local and external groups, ultimately with undesirable and potentially serious consequences for Europe,” he wrote.
