U.S. Defense Secretary Announces Six-Month Review of American Forces in Europe
Pete Hegseth told NATO ministers a review of U.S. troop deployments will depend on European allies' willingness to assume greater security responsibilities.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told NATO defense ministers in Brussels that the Pentagon will conduct a six-month review of American forces stationed in Europe. He said the assessment will focus on how quickly European allies take primary responsibility for their own security and on the possibility of reorganising NATO into a more combat-oriented structure he described as “NATO 3.0.”
“This will be a real review. It will be designed to ensure that NATO is moving fast and irreversibly toward Europe leading, stepping up to take primary responsibility for the defense of Europe,” Hegseth said.
Hegseth criticized European partners for not granting U.S. forces access to bases for potential operations against Iran, calling the lack of “predictable access, basing and overflight” a risk to American personnel. He also warned that the United States plans to invest $1.5 trillion in its own defense by 2027, framing the spending as a message of deterrence and a support to NATO allies.
The remarks follow recent U.S. statements that it would limit the supply of certain warships and aircraft to allies in a crisis, prompting European nations and Canada to discuss how to fill capability gaps. NATO’s collective defense guarantee under Article 5 remains unchanged, but the United States indicated it will not automatically provide the same level of material support as before.
The review and the push for a “hard-line” NATO are intended to address concerns about the alliance’s ability to deter threats on the continent while the United States also prepares for potential simultaneous conflicts, including in the Indo-Pacific region.
