U.S. sending 175 Marines to Romania as part of Africa crisis team

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon said on Wednesday it was bolstering the size of its Europe-based African crisis response force to 675 Marines, sending 175 new troops to a Romanian base near the Black Sea at a time of tensions over Russia's annexation of part of Ukraine.

The Marines will be part of a team headquartered in Moron, Spain, and primarily meant for operations in Africa, although they can be sent anywhere, a Pentagon spokesman said. The decision to base the additional Marines in Romania was made last year before the current crisis, he said.