The USA is putting pressure on NATO to reduce many of its external activities, including ending the alliance’s key mission in Iraq, but also those in Kosovo and Metohija, four NATO diplomats told Politico.
America, as further stated, lobbied to prevent Ukraine and Indo-Pacific allies from formally participating in the alliance’s annual summit in July in Ankara.
As the Brussels portal states, these activities by Washington reflect the White House’s aspiration to treat NATO as a strictly Euro-Atlantic defense pact, which should stop doing everything that “irritates” the American president and his MAGA concept.
According to initiatives from Washington, NATO should reduce so-called “out-of-area activities” that are outside the alliance’s core tasks of defense and deterrence.
This American “wish list” has internally become known as a “return to factory settings,” said the four diplomats, all of whom were guaranteed anonymity to speak freely about these sensitive issues.
“NATO 3.0”
However, as Politico adds, this could result in a rapid reduction of NATO activities in former war zones, as well as the exclusion of capitals, including Kyiv and Canberra, from formal talks this summer.
New details of American lobbying come after the deputy head of the Pentagon, Elbridge Colby, recently explained that the Trump administration is working on creating what he called “NATO 3.0.”
“Not every mission can be a top priority. Not every capability can be gold-plated,” Colby told the alliance’s defense ministers last week, reiterating that the USA remains committed to European security.
“The measure of seriousness is whether European forces can fight, sustain, and win in scenarios that are most important for the defense of the alliance,” he added then.
However, not all NATO members share such an opinion.
“Giving up on the alliance’s overseas initiatives is not the right approach,” said one of the four diplomats. “Partnerships are key to deterrence and defense,” that official emphasized.
Politico reminds that since returning to the White House last year, Trump has already reduced American commitments abroad, withdrawn NATO troops and personnel from Europe, and handed over some of the highest command duties of the alliance to Europeans, while seeking to redirect his foreign policy toward “core national security.“
Withdrawal also from KiM
Washington’s plan is to withdraw about 2,500 soldiers from Iraq in accordance with the 2024 agreement with the Iraqi government.
Tamer Badawi, an expert on Iraq and an associate of the Center for Applied Research, said that the NATO mission itself is not “key” to the country’s security, but that its termination along with the US withdrawal could empower militia groups and “destabilize” the regional government of northern Kurdistan.
The US request also faces resistance within the alliance. “It is not the moment to pull out of Iraq… the government wants us there,” said the first diplomat.
Another diplomat said that “the majority” of allies agree that the mission in Iraq should be reduced, but over a longer period, while maintaining a smaller operation.
The USA has also signaled that it wants to reduce KFOR forces in Kosovo and Metohija, according to the four diplomats, which is even more concerning for European allies, even if discussions about it are still in a very early stage.
The international peacekeeping mission approved by the UN, which debuted in 1999 after the Yugoslav wars, currently includes about 4,500 soldiers.
Engjellushe Morina, a senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said that the mission remains “essential” for regional security.
“We are quite concerned” about the attempt to reduce the mission, said a fifth high-ranking NATO diplomat, because “things in the Western Balkans can escalate quickly.”
Politico points out, however, that for now no decision has been made on the termination of any operation.
All 32 allies that make up NATO must approve the start and end of missions, a process that usually involves campaigns of imposition and pressure by multiple allies, not just the USA.
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Source: B92; Photo: Wikimedia Creative Commons