U.S. to Cut One-Third of NATO Fighter Jets in Europe
Get the Geopolitics newsletter
Daily geopolitics — wars, elections, sanctions, the diplomatic moves that move markets. Free.
- The United States plans to slash the fighter jets, warships, and other military assets it provides to NATO in Europe, with the New York Times reporting the cutbacks on June 12, 2026, citing two unnamed senior European officials.
- Washington will reduce its NATO fighter jet contribution by one third, cut all eight aerial refuelling tankers, and trim maritime reconnaissance aircraft, while also reallocating a missile-launching submarine, an aircraft carrier, a group of bombers, and several additional jets and warships.
- President Trump has called NATO a "paper tiger" and its members "cowards," expressing frustration that European allies have refused to join the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran.
- U.S. European Command said this month it would reassess Washington's NATO contributions to "ensure Europe takes primary responsibility for its own conventional defence," with General Alexus Grynkewich accusing Europe of "an unhealthy co-dependence" on U.S. forces.
- The reported cutbacks come as European nations race to bolster their own defence capacities since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 sparked fears Moscow could attack a NATO country.
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Trump will attend a NATO summit in Turkey in July, which Rubio described as "probably the most important meeting in NATO's history, because there are some things that need to be cleared up and fixed."
Why it matters: The U.S. is cutting one-third of its NATO fighter jets and all eight refuelling tankers in Europe while simultaneously demanding members join a war they have refused to enter. European allies now face a dual squeeze: rapidly build independent conventional defence capacity and weigh backing the Iran conflict before Trump's July Turkey summit, which Rubio called the alliance's most consequential meeting ever.
