US to withdraw from future NATO exercises, shifting focus to Asia

The United States has informed its NATO allies of its decision to cease participation in the planning of future military exercises in Europe.

While this decision will not impact NATO exercises already scheduled for 2025, where the US is set to play a pivotal role, it is expected to affect exercises that are still in the planning stages or in the conceptual phase, Caliber.Az reports per foreign media.

These military drills, which are yet to be finalized, will no longer include US involvement in their coordination or execution.

The move is part of the US' broader strategy to reduce military spending in Europe and shift focus to the Indo-Pacific region. This shift comes as Washington seeks to prioritize its resources and attention towards the growing geopolitical challenges in Asia, particularly in response to China's rising influence and activities in the region.

The decision has raised concerns among some NATO allies, who may now face the prospect of fewer US contributions to military preparedness in Europe. However, for now, planned exercises in 2025 will continue as originally planned, with the US maintaining its expected role in those operations.

Sources cited by Expressen suggest that the US is looking to streamline its military commitments in Europe, a move that could redefine its future involvement in NATO’s defence structure.

President Donald Trump is also contemplating a significant overhaul of the United States' involvement in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

The proposed changes could include recalibrating America's participation in NATO based on defence spending levels among member states, a move that would mark a departure from long-standing alliance principles.

Trump has discussed with aides the possibility of conditioning US defence commitments on whether NATO members meet a set threshold for defence spending, the officials revealed.

Currently, NATO countries are expected to spend 2 per cent of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defence, but Trump has repeatedly criticized many members for falling short of this goal. Under the proposed policy shift, the US could refuse to defend a NATO ally that is attacked unless that country meets the required defense spending level. This would challenge the central tenet of NATO's collective defense clause, Article 5, which stipulates that an attack on one NATO member is considered an attack on all.

As part of the broader shift, Trump is also considering prioritizing military exercises with countries that meet the defence spending threshold. The US has already signaled to its European allies that it could reduce its military presence in Europe. One potential option is to reposition US troops within NATO countries that have reached the desired defence spending levels, focusing military resources on those nations, according to the officials.

By Vafa Guliyeva