U.S. Urges Europe Lead

Washington is telling Europe to take the lead on arming Ukraine, with the United States stepping back from the role it held since 2022. (politico.com) Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth skipped the April 15 Ukraine Defence Contact Group meeting in Berlin, and the Pentagon sent policy chief Elbridge Colby instead. Germany’s Boris Pistorius and Britain’s John Healey chaired the session, not the United States. (politico.com; nato.int) Politico reported that more than 50 defense ministers were expected at the gathering, while the Trump administration had already given up the group’s leadership soon after taking office. NATO said Mark Rutte joined the meeting and pressed allies to keep support flowing. (politico.com; nato.int) The policy shift is written into the Pentagon’s 2026 National Defense Strategy, which puts “homeland and hemisphere” first and makes allied burden-sharing a core line of effort. The document says Europe had been allowed to “free-ride,” language that matches private U.S. pressure on allies to spend more and deliver more. (defense.gov; politico.com) That does not mean an immediate U.S. military exit from Europe. Politico reported in February that U.S. officials were signaling only limited troop pullbacks, with most of roughly 85,000 American troops on the continent expected to stay in place and a legal floor of 76,000 set by Congress. (politico.com) The practical test is no longer summit language but whether Europe can fund, build and move weapons at scale. NATO says allies have already committed $4 billion through the Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List, a system that lets European governments buy U.S.-made equipment for Ukraine while NATO coordinates delivery. (nato.int) At the Berlin meeting, Rutte cited new contributions from Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, plus more support for the Czech ammunition initiative and the NATO procurement channel known as PURL. Ukraine’s defense minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, used the session to outline battlefield needs. (nato.int) The U.S. message has also been sharpened by competing demands on American stockpiles. Politico reported in March that U.S. officials warned allies the war with Iran could delay weapons shipments to Ukraine, especially air defense interceptors. (politico.com) Ukraine’s backers are still meeting, still pledging aid and still routing some purchases through U.S. factories. The difference is that Washington is now treating Europe as the main quartermaster for the next phase of the war. (nato.int; politico.com)