Pentagon chief to reassure Nato allies

US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin will this week reaffirm Washington’s commitment to Nato and reassure allies they will be consulted on important decisions, hoping to turn the page on four years of withering criticism from former president Donald Trump.

Nato defence ministers are meeting virtually Wednesday and Thursday, and the new Pentagon chief will send “a supportive message...about how relevant Nato is,” his spokesman John Kirby said. “He wants to revitalise our commitment to the alliance,” Kirby added.

The messaging stands in stark contrast to Trump, who frequently upbraided Nato partner nations on their levels of defence spending and who famously once called the transatlantic alliance “obsolete.”

Kirby said Austin would underscore the new administration’s stance that “we’re better when we act together, that teams make us stronger and that collective security really is a shared responsibility.”

The critical issue of the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan, scheduled for completion in early May, will be high on the agenda, though Kirby said ultimately that would be a decision for President Joe Biden.

Other items up for discussion include a freeze on the partial removal of US troops from Germany that was ordered by Trump.

In June, he told the Pentagon to slash the US presence in Germany to 25,000 troops from 34,500 currently.

The decision caused consternation in Berlin and inside Nato over fears it could undermine the alliance’s deterrence capabilities in the face of a resurgent Russia.

But the Germany pullout had not been executed before Trump left office, and Biden’s administration will review US force posture and “make further posture decisions in direct consultation with our interagency partners and our allies and partners,” Pentagon spokesman lieutenant colonel Thomas Campbell said.