The Evolution of the U.S. Military Presence in Europe (2017–2023)

The article examines the evolution of the U.S. military presence in Europe as the whole and in key NATO member states between 2017 and 2023. The author employs the theory of armed forces development. The paper compares the size of the U.S. military presence in Europe at the end of the Cold War with that during the contemporary confrontation with Russia. By the mid-2020s, the size of the U.S. military presence, nearing 100 thousand troops can be considered close to its upper limit. The optimal level, taking into account capabilities and objectives, was estimated at 80 thousand troops. The dynamics of U.S. Army brigades’ deployments in Europe are explored. The article also traces the evolution of U.S. contingents in Italy and Germany, where military units were no longer predominant, having been largely replaced by various support forces, and their role as sources for reinforcing the U.S. forces in Eastern Europe. Also, the forms of U.S. military presence in Northern Norway are discussed. The author explores the U.S. approach to the rotational deployment of the Armored Brigade Combat Team (ABCT) in Poland (since 2017) and the Infantry Brigade Combat Team (IBCT) in Romania (since 2022), along with the establishment of division and corps headquarters in both countries. The noticeable increase in U.S. military presence in Europe between February and June 2022 set the framework for the New NATO Force Model (NNFM), approved at Madrid summit, and underscored the significant contributions made by European member states.