The US is grappling with an unprecedented challenge, needing to deter two nuclear-armed counterparts — Russia and China — simultaneously, amid tensions between NATO allies. US Assistant Secretary of Defense for Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Defense Programs Robert Kadlec described the situation as a “now-crisis” during a recent hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
“For the first time in its history, the United States will face the challenge of deterring two nuclear peers, China and Russia, simultaneously, as well as regional powers with growing capabilities,” Kadlec said. “This is not a hypothetical future problem. This is a now-crisis. We’re in a new and more dangerous era.”
Kadlec noted that Washington would continue working with NATO allies to strengthen the alliance’s nuclear deterrence mission’s credibility and effectiveness.
However, the Iran war has exposed cracks within the transatlantic alliance, with President Donald Trump expressing deep anguish over European allies’ unwillingness to provide military support during the Iran War.
Trump even labeled NATO a “paper tiger” and accused allies of treating it as a “one-way street,” in which the United States bears the primary burden of collective defense without reciprocal support in times of need. He has gone further, stating that he is “strongly considering” withdrawing the United States from NATO and describing reconsidering US membership as “beyond” the realm of possibility.
I was never swayed by NATO. I always knew they were a paper tiger, and Putin knows that too, by the way,” Trump told Britain’s Telegraph newspaper in an interview published in early April. He has also posted on social media that “NATO wasn’t there when we needed them, and they won’t be there if we need them again.”
The collective defense is NATO’s most fundamental principle. Article 5 states that an armed attack against one NATO member shall be considered an attack against them all. However, in the last seven decades, NATO’s Article 5 has been invoked only once, following the 9/11 terror attacks on the US in 2001.
According to reports in The Wall Street Journal, Trump is mulling imposing penalties on some of the NATO allies.
One proposal includes withdrawing US troops from European countries.
WSJ notes that Trump’s plan has received support in the highest echelons of the government. For one, the plan is much less drastic than Trump’s often-repeated threat of pulling out of NATO altogether.
At the same time, the administration believes that some punitive action is necessary to make clear that failing to support the US at a critical time will have consequences, and that US military support cannot be one-sided.
Similarly, those NATO members who did actually support the US must be rewarded.
Therefore, the plan is to move US troops from countries that did not support Washington to countries that did.
At present, around 84,000 US troops are stationed at various bases across Europe. These military bases have been central to European defense and security since the end of the Second World War.
However, in the wake of Russia’s military invasion of Ukraine, these US military bases in Europe have assumed a new significance and criticality. The US is also seriously considering closing a US military base in one of the countries that was most vocal in its opposition to the war in Iran.
Which NATO Allies Opposed the Iran War
Spain has been the most vociferous opponent of the US war on Iran. The NATO ally not only denounced the conflict but also closed Spanish airspace to US military aircraft involved in the Iran war.
Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez and Defense Minister Margarita Robles repeatedly described the war as “illegal,” “unjustifiable,” and “profoundly unjust,” framing Spain’s stance as a defense of international law.
Turkey also adopted a critical position, though its opposition was widely viewed as predictable given its large Muslim population, proximity to Iran, and long shared border.
In addition to Spain and Turkey, Italy denied US military aircraft permission to use the Sigonella air base in Sicily for operations linked to the Iran war, citing procedural and authorization issues.
Earlier, Trump launched scathing criticism of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, saying, “I’m shocked at her. I thought she had courage, but I was wrong,” in an interview with the Italian daily Corriere della Sera.
“She’s unacceptable because she doesn’t mind that Iran has a nuclear weapon and would blow up Italy in two minutes if they had the chance,” Trump said in English. Meloni, Italy’s far-right leader since October 2022, has been one of Trump’s closest allies in Europe and often seeks to act as a mediator between diverging US and European views.
But the president said they had not spoken this month, “not in a long time”, saying: “She doesn’t help us with NATO. “She doesn’t want to help get rid of a nuclear-weaponed Iran. Very sad… She’s much different than I thought.”
France also refused overflight rights for certain aircraft carrying military supplies to Israel and was described by President Trump as “very unhelpful.” While Paris deployed naval assets to the Mediterranean for defensive purposes and joined diplomatic efforts to secure the Strait of Hormuz, it firmly rejected to join any offensive operations.
Germany voiced considerable reservations, with senior officials emphasizing that “this is not our war” and ruling out direct military contributions to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Public opinion in Germany also showed strong opposition to the strikes.
In contrast, Eastern European allies such as Poland, the Czech Republic, and the Baltic states offered stronger rhetorical and, in some cases, practical support for the US position, often citing Iran’s role in supplying drones to Russia as a shared threat.
It’s a catch-22 situation for the US. On one side, it needs NATO to counter Russian and Chinese nuclear threats, and on the other side, it is considering cutting ties with the world’s strongest military bloc.
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