NATO’s top military officer: No signs of US troop withdrawal ahead of Hague summit

A month ahead of the upcoming Hague summit, NATO’s top military officer, Adm. Giuseppe Dragone, has stated that there is no indication that the US plans to withdraw forces from NATO defence plans or shift them to the Indo-Pacific region.

However, Dragone emphasised the need for NATO to prepare for potential shifts in US military focus away from Europe, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

"A key issue would be [to] plan that in advance," Dragone said, stressing that NATO must be prepared for changes in US military posture. "That would give the alliance the capability to reorient and to rebalance."

Dragone, who took office in January, made these remarks during a visit to Washington, where he met with Pentagon officials, including Adm. Christopher Grady, Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. 

His comments come as NATO faces an evolving security landscape, with the Pentagon focusing increasingly on the growing threat posed by China. A draft US defence strategy, leaked in March, suggested that the US could reposition forces currently committed to NATO defence to assist in deterring a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, leaving European countries to fill the defence gap. 

Dragone acknowledged that he had not heard whether the Pentagon plans to proceed with this strategy but suggested that European countries might eventually need to fill the potential loss of US forces in Europe, particularly in areas like air defence, electronic warfare, and drones. In response to Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine, NATO members have ramped up defence spending. 

Currently, 22 of NATO’s 32 members meet the 2 per cent GDP defence spending target. Meanwhile, discussions around increasing NATO defence spending to 3.5 per cent, with an additional 1.5 per cent for other security-related measures, are expected to be a key topic at the Hague summit.

By Naila Huseynova