U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth at meeting of NATO Ministers of Defense in Brussels Feb. 13, 2025. (Credit: nato.int)

By Gary Raynaldo     – DIPLOMATIC  TIMES

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told NATO allies Wednesday they must take primary responsibility for the defense of Europe as America focuses on the security of its own borders. Hegseth took a hard line approach in a defense ministerial meeting in Brussels making it clear Europe is not a U.S. security priority.  The Defense Secretary also said that returning to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders or allowing Ukraine to becoming a NATO member is unrealistic.  Hegseth also made it clear that as part of any security guarantee, there will not be U.S. troops deployed to Ukraine. He said any security guarantee must be backed by “capable” European and non-European troops.

“The United States faces consequential threats to our homeland.  We must – and we are – focusing on security of our own borders.”

-U.S. Defense Secretary Hegseth 

Defense Secretary Hegseth agreed that this is a critical moment in the war in Ukraine.  “As the war approaches its third anniversary, our message is clear: The bloodshed must stop.  And this war must end.”  Hegseth said stopping the fighting and reaching “an enduring peace” is a top priority for the U.S. Trump administration.  The Defense Secretary stated that President Trump “intends to end the war by diplomacy and bringing both Russia and Ukraine to the table. And the U.S. Department of Defense will help achieve this goal.”

Founded in 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was formed by 12 nations to counter the threat to European security posed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War.