NATO commander says Europe must take the lead on continental defense as US weighs troop withdrawal options, Digi Mart USA News: NATO’s top military commander says Europe must take the main responsibility for its own security. Speaking in an interview with Danish broadcaster DR, General Alexus Grynkewich, NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander Europe, said the continent must take on that role.
Grynkewich also leads US military forces in Europe and has been central to efforts to assess how the United States could reduce its military presence on the continent. According to the report, the results are scheduled to be presented on Friday, November 6, to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon.
The review involves at least four options for how American forces and military equipment could be withdrawn from Europe. The background, the report says, is that the United States wants to use more of its military resources in other parts of the world.
Grynkewich pointed to what he called the “simultaneity problem,” the challenge of handling several threats and conflicts in different parts of the world at once. The war against Iran and rivalry with China are two examples he cited.
According to the general, the question is no longer whether Europe should take on more responsibility, but how quickly that can happen. “The question now is how we get there, and how we do it quickly,” he told DR.
Grynkewich said he still has confidence in NATO’s ability to deter attacks and defend member states while the United States reduces its military presence. The United States currently has about 80,000 soldiers stationed in Europe, and it is not yet known how many, if any, would be withdrawn.
Reuters reported in August that the Pentagon was working on at least four options to be presented to Hegseth by November 6. The review began in June and is scheduled to be completed in December, after which the Trump administration will decide which changes to implement.
The United States has already begun reducing its military contributions to Europe. In May, ABC News reported that the Pentagon planned to reduce forces that could come to the aid of European NATO countries in a crisis.
At that time, the US had decided to reduce the number of combat brigades in Europe from four to three, and a planned deployment of more than 4,000 American soldiers to Poland had been halted.
In June, ABC News reported that the US planned significant cuts to the number of fighter jets, surveillance aircraft and warships made available to NATO. According to The New York Times, the number of American F-16 and F-15E fighter jets available to NATO in Europe would be reduced from about 150 to 100.
