U.S. Looks to Romania for Afghan Transit

The United States and Romania appear to be on the brink of securing a key transit agreement as the United States draws down military operations in Afghanistan. Romanian Defense Minister Mircea Dusa is in Washington on Oct. 18 for talks with U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on using Romania's Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base to facilitate the withdrawal of U.S. troops. The deal offers the United States a practical logistical alternative to its soon-to-expire lease on a transit hub in Kyrgyzstan and would also expand Romanian security ties with the United States, which Bucharest has been seeking for some time.