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The United States plans to slash the number of fighter jets and warships it provides to NATO in Europe, the New York Times has reported.
The reported cutbacks come as European nations race to bolster their defence capacities since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 sparked fears that Moscow could attack a NATO country.
US President Donald Trump has called the alliance a “paper tiger” and its members “cowards” in frustration that they have not joined the US-Israeli war against Iran.
Washington plans to reduce the number of fighter jets it supplies to Europe by one third, cut all eight aerial refuelling tankers and reduce maritime reconnaissance aircraft, the New York Times reported, citing two unidentified senior European officials.
Other assets to be reallocated include a missile-launching submarine, an aircraft carrier, a group of bomber aircraft and several jets and warships.
The US European Command said this month that it would reassess Washington’s contributions to NATO to “ensure Europe takes primary responsibility for its own conventional defence.”
US General Alexus Grynkewich accused Europe of “an unhealthy co-dependence” on US forces.
The 32-member NATO bloc was founded in 1949 and its collective security is based on Article 5, the principle that if one member is attacked, the entire alliance comes to its defence.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last week that Trump will attend a NATO summit in Turkey in July.
Rubio described it as “probably the most important meeting in NATO’s history, because there’s some things that need to be cleared up and fixed.”
Sweden says Russia may test NATO ‘cohesion’
Meanwhile, Sweden’s parliamentary defence committee warned on Friday that Russia could make military “advances” against NATO countries relatively soon if the Kremlin found the timing favourable.
“An armed attack against Sweden or our allies cannot be ruled out,” the committee said in a report that highlighted Europe’s increasingly uncertain security.
“Russian military advances, for example to test NATO’s cohesion and the credibility of Article 5, could take place in the relatively near future if the political situation is deemed favourable by the Kremlin,” the committee said in a report.
The report added that Russia could make a move even if it did not possess the military power traditionally believed to be required for an attack.
“We can note that the security policy situation remains serious and is characterised by considerable uncertainty. There is a risk of rapid deterioration with serious consequences for Sweden’s and Europe’s security,” Jorgen Berglund, who heads the committee, told a press conference.
In May, Sweden’s top military commander Michael Claesson also warned that Russia could test NATO resolve.
“They know that the entire Western world is arming itself. So I ask myself: why would they wait to exploit perceived weaknesses?,” he told public broadcaster SVT.
The defence committee gathers representatives of all of Sweden’s parties represented in parliament. Its work serves as the basis for the country’s long-term defence planning.
Its report also said that the United States was “crucial for Swedish and European security and prosperity,” but stressed that “Europe’s relationship with the United States is changing” as US “foreign and security policy has been significantly transformed” under Trump.
Sweden ended two centuries of military non-alignment and joined NATO in 2024 after Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Swedish defence spending is expected to reach 3.5% of GDP by 2030, up from 2.8% this year.
Additional sources • AFP
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