US should provide roadmap for possible troops withdrawal from Europe - Finnish Defense Ministry
Photo: Antti Häkkänen, Minister of Defense of Finland (Getty Images)
The European Union should receive a roadmap from the United States on how to act in the event of a withdrawal of US troops from the European continent, according to Finnish Defense Minister Antti Häkkänen.
"We need to have some sort of joint plan with Americans about a roadmap if the Americans are shifting the balance in the Pacific area in conventional defense capabilities," the head of the department said.
In particular, he noted that a "clear roadmap" is needed “so that there will be no kind of window of opportunity for Russia to try something,” and that the US plans should be coordinated with EU initiatives to strengthen the bloc's defense capabilities.
Politico adds that Häkkänen's statement echoes comments made by German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, who last month asked his American counterpart Pete Hagesse to "develop a roadmap to avoid gaps in capabilities, organize burden sharing progressively, to know who does what" in the event of a US withdrawal from Europe. Pistorius later said that he had not received a response from Washington.
At the same time, Häkkänen added that he understands the US arguments about the need to reorient to Asia due to China's military build-up in the Indo-Pacific region. However, the US withdrawal from Europe also poses a security threat to the continent and Russia's neighbors.
According to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, the United States has no plans to withdraw from NATO. However, he emphasized that the Alliance members should increase defense spending to 5% of GDP.
Meanwhile, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte denied the US plans to withdraw troops from Europe.
