U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s proposal to partially reduce the American military presence in Europe has reportedly been shelved following objections from Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior administration officials.
According to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump rejected Hegseth’s plan to reduce the number of U.S. troops stationed in Europe. Citing unnamed sources, the report said that Hegseth and his deputy, Elbridge Colby, had been actively advocating for a partial withdrawal from Europe in order to redirect U.S. military resources toward countering China in the Indo-Pacific region.
WSJ reported that Hegseth intended to present the details of the proposal at a high-level NATO military meeting scheduled for June. However, after the plan was submitted to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior national security officials, it faced significant opposition and was ultimately withdrawn. As a result, the Pentagon chief limited his public remarks to stating that U.S. force deployments were merely “under review.”
In a statement to WSJ, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said that the Defense Secretary had aligned his position with President Trump’s objectives and did not want to constrain the president’s decision-making options. Trump is expected to discuss the number of U.S. troops stationed in Europe and allied defense spending at next week’s NATO leaders’ summit.
Washington’s criticism of NATO has intensified in recent months. President Trump has repeatedly argued that European allies should increase their defense spending to 5 percent of GDP, warning that otherwise the United States could reconsider its commitment to the alliance.
The evolving U.S. security policy has already begun to affect several allies. In May, Trump announced that 5,000 American troops would be withdrawn from Germany. In Poland, the United States also suspended planned troop rotations.
Initially, Washington had planned to deploy an armored brigade to Poland before revising the plan to station only a few thousand troops. However, The Associated Press (AP) reported that the constantly changing directives had created confusion and uncertainty within the U.S. Armed Forces. Military commanders in the region are reportedly awaiting clearer guidance from the Pentagon before taking further steps.