With the arrest of a seventh suspect in the alleged plot to attack a U.K. base hosting U.S. bombers to riots in France, the Trump administration appears weary of Western Europe as it considers shifting American troops.
President Donald Trump confirmed that American bombers were relocated to another base following an alleged foiled attack on Fairford Royal Air Force Base over a week ago. The president has questioned the decision by British authorities to release the suspects on bail.
Trump took to social media Tuesday afternoon to comment on the ongoing riots in France, attributing the uprising to mass migration.
“What’s happening in France is nothing less than out of control mass migration. This isn’t about schools, this is about Islam wanting to take over a once great country,” the president posted on Truth Social.
The president’s comments come as the U.S. looks to reevaluate its relationship with many NATO countries, putting more pressure on allied nations to step up defense spending and scale back reliance on U.S. support.
Trump and the Department of War have already said they are reviewing possible troop reductions in parts of Europe, specifically Germany, with the possibility of Italy and Spain.
Over the weekend, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth told The Center Square that he expects more American troops to be moved back to the Western Hemisphere from Europe, possibly relocating them to parts of Central and South America.
The secretary added that as relationships with Central and South American countries progress, the U.S. wants “more burden sharing in Europe,” while focusing more on the U.S. and its own backyard.
“As we do that, a lot of those capabilities are going to move elsewhere, either back home to the big, beautiful base that we’re going to build…or to a different posture in the Western Hemisphere as we can get after these designated terrorist organizations. We are at war with the drug cartels, with DTOs,” Hegseth told The Center Square. “The president’s been clear about that, so we’re going to posture and base as necessary to ensure that we have our foot on the pedal and are taking the fight to those ISIS and Al Qaeda in our hemisphere.”
The potential shift comes as the Trump administration has sought to dominate power in the Western Hemisphere, being called the Donroe Doctrine, a play on the Monroe Doctrine.
The Trump administration has pointed to its dissatisfaction with key NATO allies, either reluctant or refusing any support for the U.S. on its strikes against Iran.
The Pentagon is expected to finalize a six-month review of the U.S. military presence in Europe by the end of the year, seeking to shift more defense responsibility to NATO countries.
While Western Europe could continue to see troop drawdowns, Trump recently announced a more permanent base is in the works in Poland, and the U.S. has committed to building two bases in Greenland.
