Admiral Bauer: If the US military withdraws from Europe, it will be in favor of NATO, not Russia
If the United States withdraws its troops deployed in Europe as part of the North Atlantic Alliance, it will only happen as a result of discussions between the allies and will not harm NATO, said Admiral Rob Bauer, Chairman of the NATO Military Committee for 2021-2025, during the 17th Annual Kyiv Security Forum, reports a correspondent of LIGA.net
Admiral Bauer said that there is no decision to withdraw the US military from Europe and 100,000 US troops remain there.
He recalled that a few weeks ago, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasized that the United States is a NATO member and has no intention of leaving the Alliance.
Bauer said that discussions about the number of US troops in Europe are not the first in 40 years and did not rule out that the number of US troops on the continent will decrease over time.
However, he is confident that such a decision will be agreed with the allies.
"If it happens, I assume it will be the result of discussion among the allies to make sure there is no void," he said.
According to the Admiral, in case of the US troops' withdrawal, they will be replaced by the military of European countries and Canada.
"And if that is the outcome of the discussion, I think NATO will be stronger for it," he said.
The US military emphasized that the possible withdrawal "is not seen as an opportunity for Russia to exploit this change in a way that it could benefit from.".
According to Bauer, the decision may be made in the next couple of years.
