Leaked Pentagon Memo Reveals: US Plans to Leave Europe on Its Own if Russia Attacks
A secret memo from the Pentagon has been revealed, showing that the U.S. may not help Europe much or at all if Russia attacks. Instead, the Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth, wants the military to focus more on stopping China from taking Taiwan and protecting the U.S. itself.
According to The Washington Post parts of this memo are almost word-for-word the same as a report from a conservative group linked to Project 2025.
In the memo, Hegseth says the U.S. is unlikely to give strong support to Europe in case of a Russian invasion. Instead, he says NATO allies in Europe should take the lead in defending the region. The U.S. would still support Europe with nuclear protection and send help only if those forces aren’t already needed for defending the U.S. or stopping China.
The memo also says Europe must start doing more to protect itself. This way, even if the U.S. is busy dealing with another crisis, NATO could still stop or fight off Russia.
The memo is called the Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance and was marked as secret. It was sent out across the Defense Department in mid-March and signed by Hegseth.
The ideas in this memo reflect some of former President Trump’s concerns, including protecting American interests across the Western Hemisphere—from Greenland to the Panama Canal to the southern tip of South America.
On March 28, Trump said, “we have to have Greenland,” which increased tensions with Denmark, the NATO country in charge of Greenland’s defense and foreign policy.
The memo is nine pages long. The Washington Post found that several parts are very similar to a longer 2024 report by the Heritage Foundation. Some parts are almost exactly the same. The Heritage Foundation didn’t respond when asked for comment.
