Sept. 4, 2026, 3:01 a.m. ET
BRUSSELS – The USA despatched a questionnaire to NATO allies asking whether or not they have been “publicly supportive” of the Trump administration’s international coverage priorities.
However the US’ prime diplomat to NATO mentioned it is not a loyalty check and received’t essentially result in a discount in troops in international locations that refused to hitch the Iran struggle.
The survey the Pentagon despatched to allies, which USA TODAY obtained, is a part of a drive posture and basing evaluate that may decide how lots of the roughly 80,000 U.S. troopers stationed in Europe stay there.
Some questions on protection spending targets and weapons manufacturing are easy. Others are extra ideological.
One requested whether or not the nation has been “publicly supportive of US international coverage priorities” in Europe, the Center East and the Western Hemisphere. One other query requested whether or not allies have “formally endorsed” the Trump administration’s imaginative and prescient for a revamped NATO, during which European nations are primarily accountable for their very own protection.
“None of these questions recommend loyalty or fealty to the US. It is simply asking, are you a succesful ally that is working along with the US of America and what’s your dedication going ahead to working with the US of America?” U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matt Whitaker instructed USA TODAY.
President Donald Trump is thought to demand absolute loyalty from his political allies, and critics of the survey say it comes with an implicit menace: nations that refuse to evolve to the administration’s viewpoint in writing might see U.S. bases of their international locations phased out and American troops yanked amid fears of a Russian assault.
The administration says that is a mischaracterization. The questionnaire is only one piece of data, and the primary a part of a dialog with allies, Whitaker mentioned.
Spain, which didn’t enable the US to make use of its airspace for the Iran struggle, and Italy, which barred U.S. warplanes from touchdown at a naval set up in Sicily, are among the many international locations that might be affected. Trump has repeatedly criticized each nations and the UK.
The survey particularly requested “what, if any, restrictions has the nation positioned on U.S. entry, basing, and overflight” rights and whether or not nations are “prepared to cut back or eradicate” these limitations or amend current army agreements.
“I feel this offers them an opportunity to have that dialog about going ahead. If we provide you with one other state of affairs like that, what’s your coverage? How are we going to course of this?” Whitaker mentioned.
US accused of conducting a ‘loyalty check’
The administration says the drive posture evaluate is a pure subsequent step now that NATO nations have elevated their protection spending, in response to an aggressive, decade-long push from Trump and Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
European allies and Canada collectively elevated their protection spending by $139 billion in 2025. That represents a 20% improve over 2024, in response to NATO. Allies have additionally dedicated to spending 5% of their annual GDP on protection and defense-related expenditures by 2035.
“We’ll preserve a detailed eye on allies who should not doing that, and who say ‘no,’ or ‘perhaps’ or ‘wait and see’ when it issues most,” Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth warned on June 18. “It is a evaluate that some international locations will fail, and others will move with flying colours.”
The administration subsequently despatched allies a questionnaire, saying responses could be used to assist Pentagon leaders work up an evaluation of various drive posture and basing choices. Responses have been due Aug. 28.
Bloomberg was first to report on the questionnaire. Al Jazeera additionally revealed components.
USA TODAY additionally reviewed the survey, which had greater than three dozen questions.
Former U.S. officers and protection specialists instructed USA TODAY they’d by no means seen or heard of the Pentagon sending European international locations a questionnaire as a part of a drive posture evaluate earlier than.
“This has turned the entire course of on its head,” mentioned Julianne Smith, the U.S. ambassador to NATO beneath former President Joe Biden. “Loyalty has by no means, in my thoughts, been one of many components that the US has checked out.”
Being in an alliance, Smith mentioned, is “not about saluting the whole lot that the US does.”
Smith mentioned the survey’s wording left allies questioning how they have been anticipated to reply.
“Most of them are shocked that they acquired a questionnaire of this type,” she mentioned. “They wonder if or not they have been despatched it by chance.”
One European diplomat instructed USA TODAY it learn like a guidelines. The particular person mentioned they weren’t offended – however the survey appeared political and have become a distraction.
Pentagon considers its choices
Elbridge Colby, the U.S. beneath secretary of struggle for coverage and the Pentagon’s third-ranking official, is main the method.
Colby vocally pushed for decreased American help for Ukraine and Europe to prioritize China in 2024 and has repeatedly clashed with GOP lawmakers, together with Home Armed Providers Chair Mike Rogers. The Alabama Republican accused Colby final yr of deceptive him a couple of troop discount in Romania.
Former Home Intelligence Chairman Mike Turner, R-Ohio, blasted Colby’s testimony at a March listening to as “gross” and “disingenuous” throughout a heated trade on the US’ dedication to NATO.
Colby is receiving enter from the Nationwide Safety Council on the White Home, Whitaker, and the State Division. At the very least 4 choices can be introduced to Hegseth by Nov. 6 to think about. The ultimate resolution can be made by Hegseth and Trump.
A kind of choices, Whitaker indicated, is to depart troop ranges and base areas the identical.
Colby declined to inform reporters what the opposite choices have been throughout a go to to NATO’s headquarters on Aug. 27. However he introduced up using international locations’ airspace and a need for predictability from allies, which he mentioned was not all the time the case when it got here to preventing Iran.
He mentioned the US was mainly asking its allies: “What are you ready to supply?”
Whitaker mentioned he’d heard from different ambassadors that they’d a greater understanding of how the method would work after assembly with Colby.
“I used to be there in a number of bilateral conferences with our allies the place they have been gladly delivering their questionnaire,” Whitaker mentioned. “They see it as a really severe doc, and I’ve not heard a single concern about any of the contents.”
Allies concern US will make deep cuts
Congress prohibited the US from yanking most of its troops out of Europe final yr. However some specialists and critics of the administration say the language within the laws is free.
“They haven’t handcuffed the administration. All they’ve carried out is place hurdles in entrance of the administration,” mentioned John Deni, a analysis professor on the U.S. Military Battle School.
The administration is required to maintain a minimum of 76,000 troops on the continent – until it will probably display that it consulted with Congress and NATO allies and supply an evaluation of the impact on U.S. nationwide safety, alliance readiness, and basing relocation prices.
Critics of the administration and even some allies fear that the Pentagon will attempt to reduce beneath the mandated ground.
“What recourse does Congress have if the administration decides to drop to, say, 60,000 or 50,000?” Smith, who was Biden’s ambassador to NATO, mentioned. “It is unclear to me whether or not or not they’ll adhere to that or whether or not or not they care.”
Requested whether or not the Trump administration may attempt to go beneath 76,000, Whitaker was noncommittal.
“I do not forejudge what is going on to occur,” Whitaker instructed USA TODAY. “I feel proper now it is not mature sufficient in type of the decision-making – and never even decision-making, however within the calculations – to know the place that quantity’s going to land.”
The administration might foyer Congress to maintain the language out of a future protection authorization act, Deni mentioned. However that is a trickier proposition given the NATO alliance maintains deep, bipartisan help.
“I doubt that Congress will approve, at this important second, discount in drive construction in Europe when Putin is extra harmful and threatening than ever,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, instructed “Face the Nation” on Aug. 30.
European allies are proper to be involved that the Trump administration is searching for methods to make cuts, specialists say.
The USA has already mentioned it might pull 5,000 forces out of Germany, some 700 from jap Europe, and has quietly eliminated a minimum of 500 troops from Estonia inside the final yr. The Pentagon additionally mentioned it might cancel a brigade fight rotation to Poland. Trump introduced days later that he was reversing course and sending an extra 5,000 troops there in Could.
“I feel the Europeans ought to take the considerations severely that there are more likely to be fewer U.S. troops and fewer U.S. army capability on the standard aspect in Europe sooner or later than there was up to now,” Council on Overseas Relations President Michael Froman mentioned.
European allies ought to put together themselves and make the required reforms and investments to imagine accountability for a better portion of their typical protection, Froman mentioned.
Troop reallocation a chance
Another choice the US might train is redistributing forces in Europe. Some international locations inside the NATO alliance are brazenly angling for extra.
“We’re speaking about a number of bases, a number of areas the place American troopers could be completely stationed in Poland,” Polish Deputy Protection Minister Paweł Zalewski instructed reporters on Aug. 27 in Brussels, the place he pitched Colby at NATO’s headquarters.
Poland leads the best way in protection spending as a share of GDP, adopted by Baltic neighbors, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, which all share a border with Russia.
However transferring bases from international locations in Western Europe like Spain or Italy could be expensive, individuals accustomed to the discussions argued. Geographically talking, it could not make sense to reallocate troops from these international locations to jap Europe, as a result of these bases don’t serve the identical operate.
Cristian Terheș, a conservative member of the European Parliament, argued that some adjustments could also be warranted.
“A lot of the U.S. drive posture in Europe nonetheless displays Chilly Battle realities, despite the fact that NATO’s main safety problem in Europe is on its jap, not western, flank,” Terheș, who’s Romanian-American and represents Romania in parliament, mentioned.
“The USA can subsequently transfer forces from Western Europe to Romania, Poland and the Baltic states, strengthening deterrence whereas releasing up forces and assets for different strategic priorities world wide,” he mentioned.
A European diplomat mentioned they have been centered on convincing the administration that it’s not in the US’ curiosity to chop its troop presence in Europe in any respect.
Kurt Volker, the U.S. ambassador to NATO in George W. Bush’s administration, mentioned the questionnaire was doubtless drafted with the intention of determining “who’s for us and who’s towards us” by Trump fanatics with out a lot expertise. He referred to the push as DOGE 2.0.
However the individuals managing assets and belongings will ultimately weigh in, mentioned Volker, who was Trump’s particular consultant for Ukraine negotiations in his first time period.
“It isn’t going to information what truly occurs,” Volker mentioned.
