US Defense Minister Pit Heggset announced a new review of troop deployment in Europe and threatened to suspend part of the US contributions to NATO if allies, in his words, “are taking advantage of American security for free”, do not fulfill their obligations regarding defense spending.
This review, which Heggset announced to defense ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Thursday, will last up to six months and will include consultations with the US Congress, which has legislatively established a minimum number of American troops in Europe. According to Heggset, the review aims to ensure that NATO “is moving quickly and irreversibly towards Europe taking primary responsibility for its own defense”. This comes a few weeks after the US informed its allies of a change in support, noting that in the event of an attack on one of them, Washington will no longer provide certain military ships and aircraft.
Reducing Military Capabilities and Criticizing Allies
Last month, the US informed its allies that it had decided to reduce the volume of military capabilities available to the alliance in crisis situations, seeking to gradually end “an unhealthy dependence” on American forces. According to NATO Supreme Commander, US Air Force General Alexus Grinevich, this is because “Washington is facing the potential for simultaneous conflicts on several fronts”. European allies and Canada are currently trying to find ways to fill the gaps created by this US decision.
Heggset also criticized allies who did not support the US during the war with Iran, refusing to provide basing and overflight rights for war-related actions. He emphasized that the American review will ensure the guarantee of US basing and overflight rights. Arriving at the NATO meeting, the defense minister stated that the US will be “open, publicly and privately, about countries that need to do more to fulfill their obligations”.
Vision of “NATO 3.0”
Describing his vision of “NATO 3.0”, Pit Heggset noted that it is a realization after the end of the Cold War that the alliance must return to “a real tough military alliance with real military capabilities, able to deter directly here, on the continent, and take leadership in the ordinary defense of Europe”.
Source: Al Jazeera