US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the United States has no plans to leave NATO, and that the possible transfer of troops between countries is a common practice. He also emphasized Washington’s role in helping end the war in Ukraine. This was stated in his statement during a press conference in Bratislava, according to Slovo and Delo. PromPolitInform reports.
“Regarding NATO, I don’t understand – the United States has thousands and thousands of troops deployed as part of the NATO mission. And we made it clear, I think it was stated very clearly at the summit just a few days ago or at the defense ministers’ meeting. We are not leaving NATO. We are not leaving,” Rubio said.
According to him, thousands of American troops continue to be deployed as part of the Alliance’s missions, and the possible transfer of troops between countries is a common practice.
Rubio also emphasized that every nation has the primary responsibility to protect its people and emphasized the importance of strengthening the defense capabilities of allies.
“That’s why, by the way, we talk about the importance of our NATO partners having the appropriate capabilities… I think what we’re saying is that the stronger our allies are, the stronger we are together,” the Secretary of State added.
At the same time, Rubio stated that Washington’s current role is to help end the bloody and deadly war in Ukraine.
“We see the role of the United States as trying to help end this very deadly, very bloody, and very expensive war. There’s terrible suffering… The death toll, no matter what the numbers on both sides, is too high,” he said.
According to the Secretary of State, President Donald Trump has spent a year trying to determine whether Washington could mediate and achieve peace through negotiations. As a reminder, according to media reports, some NATO officials are refusing to share intelligence with the US following President Donald Trump’s statements about the possible acquisition of Greenland.
As is known, Trump previously criticized European leaders who oppose his intention to establish control over Greenland. He believes that Europe should focus on resolving Russia’s war against Ukraine.
It was also reported that the Pentagon plans to gradually reduce US participation in nearly 30 NATO organizations and reduce the number of American personnel in Europe by approximately 200 troops.
Recently, it was announced that the US will transfer command of two key NATO command posts—in Naples and Norfolk—to European officers.
