Hegseth orders review of US forces in Europe

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced a sweeping review of American forces in Europe on Thursday and warned that NATO allies failing to meet defense commitments could see Washington reduce its contributions to the alliance.

Speaking to NATO defense ministers in Brussels, Hegseth said the review would last up to six months and include consultations with Congress, which has legislated a minimum number of U.S. forces in Europe. He framed the effort as part of what he called “NATO 3.0,” aimed at shifting more responsibility for Europe’s security onto European members of the alliance.

“Make no mistake about it, this will be a real review,” Hegseth said. “It will be designed to ensure that NATO is moving fast and irreversibly towards Europe leading, stepping up to take primary responsibility for the defence of Europe.”

Hegseth sharply criticized unnamed allies he accused of relying too heavily on the United States. “Some countries will fail, and others will pass with flying colours,” he said. He added that “some of NATO’s largest economies, some of our richest countries” still appeared to believe “the era of free-riding is here.”

He also said U.S. annual dues to NATO would be tied to whether other members meet defense spending targets. “Where other allies do not spend with urgency, our dues contributions will go down,” he said.

The United States has pressed NATO members to reach a defense spending target of 5% of gross domestic product by 2035, including 3.5% on core defense and 1.5% on related infrastructure. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said members would be expected to present “clear, concrete and credible plans” before a summit in Ankara on July 7-8.

Rutte said European allies and Canada had already increased defense spending by €90 billion, or about $103 billion, last year, a rise of nearly 20%. Al Jazeera reported Rutte’s figure as $90 billion more than the previous year. Rutte said Europeans were “already backfilling” some resources the United States was cutting.

The review follows a U.S. decision to reduce its commitments to the NATO Force Model, a pool of high-readiness forces available to the alliance’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe at short notice. The details have not been publicly released. The BBC reported that the reductions include air and naval capabilities, while Al Jazeera, citing figures provided to Reuters by a military source, said they range from refueling aircraft to fighter jets, drones and ships.

Rutte said the U.S. reductions to NATO’s crisis forces had already taken effect. “The question yesterday came up: Is this immediate or not? It is immediate,” he told reporters.

A senior NATO official told the BBC that “not everything” the United States is withdrawing “can be absolutely replaced,” though some work has already been done and more efforts are underway. Some ministers arriving at the Brussels meeting described offers to increase their contributions to NATO’s crisis pool.

Hegseth also criticized NATO members that limited assistance to U.S. forces during the war with Iran, including countries that denied basing or overflight rights for war-related activity. He said the review would seek to ensure U.S. basing and overflight access.

In May, the United States announced it would withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany after a dispute between President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz over the Iran war. Poland was also told 4,000 U.S. troops would be pulled out, but Trump later reversed that plan and promised 5,000 would be deployed. Poland hosts up to 10,000 U.S. troops on a rotational basis.

Polish Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said Thursday that Washington was open to Warsaw’s offer to provide a permanent base for U.S. troops, with a final decision depending on the details of an agreement.