US Defense Secretary to Skip Key NATO Defense Ministers Meeting
US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth will not attend the meeting of NATO defense chiefs, scheduled for February 12 in Brussels. Instead, the United States will be represented by his deputy for political affairs, Elbridge Colby, Politico writes .
Pete Hegseth. Photo: Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images
This is the second consecutive instance of a high-ranking US official missing important consultations within the Alliance, raising concerns among allies about the US role in Euro-Atlantic security.
According to sources, Hegseth's inclination towards proposals to reduce the American military presence in Europe, as well as changes to the US National Defense Strategy, which shifts priorities towards defending its own territory and countering China, may explain his absence from the NATO ministerial meeting.