US Commander reaffirms ironclad NATO defense commitment ahead of NATO Summit 2026

The commander of the US European Command, Alexus Grinkevich, affirmed early Friday that the military relationship between the United States and its NATO allies “remains strong,” despite a period of strained relations between Washington and most of its allies, particularly in Europe, home to the largest number of NATO members.

Speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Grinkevich stated, “At the military level, I can assure you that our relationship with NATO remains strong. With every Chief of Defense Staff across the Alliance, we have maintained our focus on what we are responsible for doing, which is defending every inch of NATO territory against any form of aggression.”

Grinkevich praised NATO’s Operation Eastern Sentinel, a multi-domain mission aimed at enhancing surveillance, air defense, and deterrence on the Alliance’s eastern flank, emphasizing its contribution to maintaining secure airspace over Eastern Europe.

He added that the alliance is currently updating its Standing Defense Plan for Integrated Air and Missile Defense across its member states, explaining that “this is the first time in decades that this has been done, and it is expected to be completed by the NATO summit this summer.”

The annual NATO summit is scheduled to be held on July 7 and 8 in the Turkish capital, Ankara. NATO, which includes 32 member states, among them the United States, is the world’s largest military alliance, but the policies of current US President Donald Trump have caused resentment among some member states.

–KUNA