The administration of President Donald Trump has stoked allies’ fears that the six-month force deployment review started in July could reduce its presence in Europe.
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“Our mindset, of course, is related to (…) consultations and cooperation. We want to hear the opinions of our allies,” said US Deputy Secretary of Defense Elbridge Colby during talks at NATO headquarters in Brussels.
Washington has sent out a questionnaire asking European countries to show how they are progressing in taking a leading role in defending their continent after agreeing to significantly increase military budgets.
“We are indeed having a businesslike conversation about how we will move forward together in a world where Europe, obviously a very wealthy continent, can and does take primary responsibility for its conventional defense,” said E. Colby.
He indicated that Washington aims to “accelerate and encourage what is happening, and then look at the strategic posture of US forces in Europe at a high level.”
“We will achieve the goal”
In June, Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth announced the force review, angering the US over European countries’ reactions to Washington’s war with Iran, including restrictions on American forces using their bases at the start of the conflict.
“Let’s look at some things, such as access, basing, and flights over territory – there is a lot of good here, but there are some things we need to resolve so that moving forward everything makes sense,” said E. Colby.
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NATO leader Mark Rutte assured that Washington’s allies are making progress by increasing defense spending and acquiring key capabilities.
“It is still ongoing. However, much more needs to be done. We will achieve the goal,” M. Rutte told E. Colby.
D. Trump has long pressured Europe to spend more on defense, signaling to Washington that it wants to withdraw from this continent and focus on other challenges, such as China.
The Pentagon, which has deployed about 80,000 troops in Europe, has already informed allies that it is reducing forces allocated to NATO defense plans.
Washington also announced in May that it would withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany, but later D. Trump indicated that the same number would be sent to neighboring Poland.
European countries are significantly increasing military budgets – in 2025 they agreed to D. Trump’s demand to allocate 5% of GDP to security spending by 2035.
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