US to Cut Military Presence in Europe Immediately
The US will cut its military presence in Europe beyond 5,000 troops, reducing aircraft, naval assets and NATO rapid response commitments.
The United States has decided to immediately begin reducing its military presence in Europe. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated this, according to TASS. At the same time, he stressed that the alliance expects Washington to preserve its collective defense commitments and take part in defending European countries in the event of an armed conflict.
This concerns not only the previously announced withdrawal of 5,000 US troops from Germany. US President Donald Trump confirmed that the reduction will be much broader, saying that Washington intends to cut the contingent by far more than 5,000 personnel.
As part of the review of its military strategy, the Pentagon plans to reduce the air group used for NATO purposes. The number of F-16 and F-15E fighter jets is expected to be cut from 150 to 100. In addition, the number of maritime reconnaissance aircraft is to be reduced from 26 to 15, while all eight tanker aircraft are expected to be withdrawn.
The changes will also affect naval forces. The United States plans to redeploy one missile-armed submarine, one aircraft carrier and several warships.
Washington also intends to reduce its contribution to NATO’s rapid response forces. The United States will no longer provide the alliance with an aircraft carrier strike group, a strategic bomber formation and more than 50 fighter jets.
The decision by the US administration came as a surprise to many NATO allies and caused concern in the US Congress. Lawmakers fear that a premature reduction of the contingent could weaken the alliance’s position and send the wrong signal to Russia.
At the same time, current rules allow the administration to carry out a partial troop withdrawal without congressional intervention if the total number of US military personnel in Europe remains above the established threshold of 76,000.
The main goal of this policy is to redistribute resources in favor of the Indo-Pacific region and force European allies to build up their own armed forces faster, reducing dependence on US military support.