Work has begun in Romania building Nato’s biggest air base, a title now held by the Ramstein air base in Germany.
The $2.7bn project will expand the Mihail Kogalniceanu base near the Black Sea port of Constanta, Euractiv reports.
Once complete, it will cover around 30 sq km and will be able to accommodate around 10,000 personnel with their families.
The expansion is a response to increased tensions with the Russian Federation, and the perceived need for the Western alliance to strengthen its eastern frontier.
Among the additions to the base will be runways and an upgraded control tower. There will also be a flight simulator and hangar facilities.
The residential elements will amount to the construction of a small town. There will be a barracks, offices, a school, shops, restaurants, a cinema as well as a hospital.
Romania has frequently hosted US troops engaged in training and security missions. American combat and surveillance aircraft also operate from the country.
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