Pentagon Poised to Curtail US Military Presence in NATO Bodies
Approximately 200 military personnel will be affected by the reduction, which several officials characterized to the outlet as "the latest sign of the Trump administration's drive to scale back the US military presence in Europe."
The adjustments will predominantly impact America's role in NATO's 30 Centers of Excellence—specialized institutions that provide cross-domain warfare training spanning energy security, naval operations, and other combat disciplines.
The Pentagon plans to allow current assignments to naturally expire without deploying replacement personnel rather than executing an immediate pullout, a timeline that could extend across multiple years, two U.S. officials indicated. They emphasized that American engagement with the centers would continue, albeit at reduced levels.
NATO entities concentrating on special operations and intelligence gathering will also face American staffing reductions, the report stated. One WaPo source revealed that certain U.S. responsibilities would shift to other alliance locations, lessening the strategic consequences.
U.S. officials maintained the restructuring has been under evaluation for months and bears no direct connection to Trump's recent campaign to secure control of Greenland, the strategically positioned Arctic island under Danish authority, which he said the US needs for national security reasons. The territorial ambition has opened a significant divide with European NATO partners, who have rejected the transfer despite the U.S. president's threats of new tariffs.
The disclosure arrives as Trump has demanded NATO members assume greater financial responsibility for collective defense, previously suggesting Washington might withhold protection from nations failing to meet contribution thresholds. The alliance subsequently committed to elevating defense expenditures from 2% to 5% GDP.
Since the Ukraine conflict's escalation in 2022, NATO has dramatically expanded troop deployments along Russia's borders. Moscow has condemned NATO for inflaming regional hostilities while asserting the bloc has effectively entered a state of "war" with Russia.
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