US plans to reduce personnel and NATO advisory involvement, media report

What Reuters learned

According to sources, as part of this move - which the Trump administration has informed a number of European countries about - the US plans to cut around 200 positions within NATO structures. These include bodies responsible for the Alliance's military planning and intelligence.

Sources say that among the organizations affected by the cuts are the NATO Intelligence Fusion Centre in the UK and the Allied Special Operations Forces Command in Brussels.

Additionally, Portugal’s STRIKFORNATO, which oversees certain naval operations, will also be downsized. Several other similar NATO structures will be affected by the cuts as well.

The agency was not told why the US decided to reduce the number of personnel involved in NATO, but the move aligns with the Trump administration’s stated intention to redirect more resources to the Western Hemisphere.

In response to a request for comment, a NATO spokesperson said that changes in the composition of US personnel are not unusual, and that the American presence in Europe is currently larger than it has been in recent years.

“NATO and U.S. authorities are in close contact about our overall posture – to ensure NATO retains our robust capacity to deter and defend,” the NATO representative said.

Reuters added that it was unable to obtain a complete list of NATO organizations affected by the new policy.

According to one source, about 400 US service members are currently stationed in the organizations impacted by the cuts, meaning that the total number of Americans in those NATO bodies will be reduced by roughly half.

Sources also said that rather than recalling personnel from their current posts, the US will primarily refrain from filling vacancies as personnel rotate out of their positions.

What WP reports

The Washington Post published a similar report, stating that the Pentagon plans to scale back its involvement in certain elements of NATO’s force structure and in a number of the alliance’s advisory groups.

The planned move will affect around 200 service members and will reduce US participation in nearly 30 NATO organizations, including centers of excellence that train NATO forces in various domains of warfare.

Three sources said that among the advisory groups facing potential cuts are those dealing with naval energy security.

The Pentagon will also reduce its participation in official NATO bodies focused on special operations and intelligence. However, one source noted that some of these US functions will be transferred to other alliance units, which would limit the overall impact of the move.

One official уточнив, that the change has been under discussion for several months and is not linked to President Donald Trump’s increasingly sharp rhetoric regarding Greenland.

US withdrawal from NATO

At the end of 2025, US Representative and Republican Thomas Massie introduced a bill proposing that the US withdraw from the NATO alliance.

According to him, the alliance is a relic of the Cold War, and therefore, the US should leave it and redirect those funds toward defending its own country.

Politico reported that NATO has no contingency plans in case the US decides to withdraw from the alliance.

At the same time, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said recently that Washington will remain in NATO.