Pentagon floats NATO 3.0 plan to cut US troop levels in Europe, pivot to Pacific
Defense Secretary Hegseth met the UK's Wes Streeting at the Pentagon as officials described a rebalancing that would thin out US forces in Europe.
Published
The Pentagon said a plan known as NATO 3.0 envisions a rebalancing of the alliance that would reduce the US troop presence in Europe and shift more American attention to the Pacific and other regions. The outline was described as US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met with the UK's Wes Streeting at the Pentagon on Thursday.
The idea formalizes a discussion that started in November, when a Pentagon review of Europe troop levels flagged a possible cut of up to 40,000 personnel. What was then a budget question has now been framed as a structural shift in how the US positions its forces.
The shift comes as Poland and NATO officials describe an intensifying hybrid and conventional threat from Russia, including suspected strikes on two tankers in NATO waters and warnings of a deadlier phase of hostile activity. That puts the idea of a smaller US footprint in tension with allied calls for stronger deterrence.
The meeting with Streeting follows repeated UK pledges to raise defense spending to 3.5% of GDP by 2035. Any US pullback could shift more of the near-term burden onto European budgets and procurement timelines rather than Washington's. The Pacific reorientation also fits a broader pattern in US deployments: the US recently sent Reaper drones to Colombia and Ecuador as part of a widening anti-cartel campaign.