The Pentagon has reportedly told European diplomats that the United States plans to scale back parts of its security assistance to Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia three NATO allies that sit on Russia’s doorstep. The message, delivered in late August, came with a warning for Europe to become less reliant on Washington for its defense.
Pentagon official David Baker explained that under President Donald Trump, the U.S. military would be focusing more on protecting the homeland and shifting away from certain overseas commitments. The announcement left some European officials uneasy, with fears that reduced American support could encourage Russian President Vladimir Putin to test NATO’s resolve.
Those concerns quickly surfaced when Estonia reported that Russian MiG-31 fighter jets breached its airspace for about ten minutes on Friday. Italian F-35s scrambled to intercept and push them back. Russia denied the violation, insisting its planes flew strictly over neutral waters. Just hours later, Poland accused Russian jets of buzzing one of its oil platforms. The incidents followed reports from last week when Polish forces shot down Russian drones in their skies.
Despite these provocations, Washington’s reaction has been noticeably restrained. Trump waited several hours before commenting on Estonia’s airspace breach, warning only that it could mean “big trouble.
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