Estonian President Calls for Preparations to Reduce US Troops in Europe

European countries bordering Russia should be prepared for the possibility that Washington may reduce the number of its troops in the region by building up its own military capabilities. About this in an interview with the newspaper Politico said the President of Estonia Alar Karis.

He said that he convinced the US president Donald Trump of the importance of keeping troops in Eastern Europe when they sat next to each other for two hours during the Pope's funeral in April Francis.

"I have explained everything. The presence of American troops in Estonia-not only in Estonia, but in Europe-is crucial, and it's important for the United States, not just for Europe," Karis said.

But while Karis has been reassured by some of Trump's statements, including his promise this week to keep U.S. troops in Poland, he emphasized that it is still "very difficult to predict" what Washington will do in the Baltic states.

Countries such as Estonia "have to be prepared for any scenario," and the risk of a withdrawal by NATO's largest member "means we have to build up our own capabilities," Karis added.

Currently, about 2,000 U.S. troops are deployed in the Baltic States (Estonia, Lithuania, and Latvia) as part of the military build-up following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

The Pentagon is currently conducting a review of its global force structure and is expected to present the results later this month. Although the content of the review is not yet known, it is being prepared under the leadership of Under Secretary of Defense for Political Affairs Albright Colby, a strong advocate of reducing the US presence in Europe.

• On March 28, 2025, a NATO general said that the Alliance has no plans to reduce its presence of troops in Europe.
• On April 8, NBC News wrote that The Pentagon is considering a proposal to withdraw up to 10,000 US troops from Romania and Poland.