Washington has removed air and maritime assets from the alliance's force model
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said Europeans and Canada need more time to replace some of the capabilities the US no longer makes available to allies in case of crisis.
Earlier this month, the US informed allies that it is reducing the assets it has available to defend NATO, including both air and maritime capabilities. Some reports said submarines capable of launching cruise missiles and a third of fighter jets previously committed had been removed.
The alliance’s 32 defence ministers are meeting in Brussels on Thursday to prepare for the leaders’ summit in Ankara next month. They will also address the NATO force model, the framework for making national forces available to the alliance.
Rutte told reporters that “we see the picture positive”, with some of the US capabilities that have been removed by Washington from the force model “already filled” by Europeans and Canada, “some nearly, and some still needing more work”.
