He intends to stop long -term help programs for Europe’s security. This is reported by her report, citing sources with knowledge of the subject.
At the center of the cuts will be a program to strengthen the eastern side of Epirus against a possible attack by. In essence, this is a move that wants to remodel Washington’s role in its context.
The decision will affect military assistance worth hundreds of millions of dollars, based on some of the most vulnerable members of the Alliance. This is a move that has bothered their allies.
“The Russians really only care about US dollars, US troops and the American flag,” a European official said about what message would send a cut of US aid to Moscow. Like others, this person spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive issue.
In a statement, the White House said that his move to cut security was “tuned” with the Europeans and is in line with both Trump’s executive decree to reassess American external aid and with the “long -term emphasis” to ensure that Europe is giving.
“Europe is stepping up its efforts,” the statement said. At another point he points out that “We are pleased with the European allies who take more defense initiatives.”
Information to US Allies
Trump has doubted his approach to Europe in the midst of a long -standing conflict in Ukraine, demonstrating both frustration and warmth to Putin, while approved plans to support Kiev through US sales and security guarantees.
The Pentagon under Trump has also sent mixed messages, many people who know the issue said. Defense Minister Pitt Hegschet met in July with the leaders of the three Baltic countries bordering Russia – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – and praised their efforts to increase defense spending. But in the background, the Defense Ministry Policy Bureau was aggressive in its efforts to terminate some support programs.
In Congress under the leadership of the Republicans, where inter -party support for NATO and Ukraine remains strong, consultants confused the government’s plan. They said it is not clear how much funding will be affected and if any of the target money is related to Ukraine. A Senate adviser said the Ministry of Defense has not provided legislators information on the matter, despite the requests.
David Baker, head of Pentagon’s policy on Europe and NATO, informed a group of European defense officials on the end of last week, attributing the change to the change of priorities within the government, people said.
Withdraws funding from Baltic countries
Baker is closely aligned with the head of Pentagon’s Pentagon policy, who has long argued that the United States cannot maintain today’s level of support for Europe and double China’s prestige efforts to the Pacific, a Pacific US officials said that the Trump government’s increased attention to border security and domestic defense, except for China, is a key reason for ending European security funding.
In a statement, the Ministry of Defense noted that Trump and Hegschez have repeatedly asked Europeans to spend more on their own defense, as countries have agreed at the NATO summit in the summer. The cancellation of aid programs, the announcement said, was in accordance with an executive decree issued earlier in the year and coordinated with the State Department and the White House.
Among the programs to be suspended is the Baltic Security Initiative, an effort to strengthen these three countries with money for military infrastructure and education. Within NATO, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia spend most of their GDP on defense, but have relatively small economies, which makes US funding particularly important to them.
Smaller US military presence in Europe
The program began in 2018 and has almost doubled in size since then, said Lauren Sperantza, former adviser to Defense Minister Lloyd Austin and now a European Policy Analysis Associate. Money is a symbolic demonstration of support for the defense of these countries, he said, while protecting against the possibility of a Russian attack. “It’s about preventing the US from ever going there to fight to fulfill their NATO obligations,” Sperantza said.
Earlier this summer, the Senate Committee approved $ 225 million for the Baltic initiative in the defense spending bill, although the legislation has not yet come to vote in plenary.
Although the issue of security assistance was not raised in detail during Hegschez’s meeting with the Baltic Defense Ministers, they tried to argue that the United States should maintain troops in their countries – which are considered much more important deterrent to Russia.
Colby also leads a revision of the attitude of US forces around the world, which European officials are widely awaiting that it will end up in a smaller US military presence in Epirus.
Unknown which other programs will be cut
During the Polish president’s visit to the White House on Wednesday, Trump said the United States would not withdraw troops from the country, a narrow Baltic supporter, although he acknowledged that the government had thought of doing so elsewhere. “If anything,” Trump said, “we will put more there.”
It was not immediately clear what other programs are facing cuts or when the money previously approved by Congress would be exhausted. The funding left in the programs can be spent by October 2026.
The decision is likely to provoke reactions from Congress, where legislators from both parties are increasingly worried that the Trump government is not spending money as they write in the law, including a last -minute request not to send about $ 5 billion in external assistance.
Concerns in the Capitol, people who are aware of the issue have been stated, it is caused by the fact that even if legislators spend money on European Security programs, the Ministry of Defense could redirect funding without their contribution, a process known as “reprogramming” that allows the Pentagon to carry it.
The House of Representatives and the Senate could move to protect the programs in the act of authorizing the national defense, the defense policy bill that must pass and which will soon come for a complete vote in every body.
