NATO in May 2026: the most important developments in security
In May 2026 NATO's security picture centred on the planned reduction of US forces in Europe. After the US announced on 2 May that it would withdraw troops from Germany, the alliance's top commander said the process would take several years and could not be given an exact timeline, and that the withdrawals did not harm NATO's defences. Secretary General Mark Rutte said on 20 May that the reductions would not weaken the alliance, while the Pentagon cut Brigade Combat Teams in Europe. On 22 May President Donald Trump said he would send 5,000 additional US troops to Poland, which Rutte welcomed, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the movements were not a punishment. Europe accelerated work on its own long-range missiles after the US scrapped a deployment plan, and NATO pressed European arms makers to raise production.
Russia and the eastern flank were the second theme. On 9 May Vladimir Putin said Russia faced an aggressive force backed by NATO. NATO ran large exercises, including its biggest special forces exercise in Europe, drills in Poland, Finland and Latvia, and the Iron Wolf exercise in Lithuania. Serbia and NATO held their first joint exercise near Bujanovac. On 28 May the alliance announced that a German-Dutch corps would lead land forces in Estonia and Latvia. Lithuania called on NATO to attack Kaliningrad, and Russian lawmakers threatened a nuclear response to Rutte's warnings.
Drones defined the last weeks. On 19 May a NATO fighter jet shot down a drone that had violated Estonian airspace; it was later confirmed to be Ukrainian. NATO launched an air policing mission after a drone alert in Lithuania. On 29 May a Russian drone struck an apartment building in Romania and injured two people. NATO, the EU and the United States condemned it, Rutte reaffirmed the commitment to defend allied territory, and Romania invoked Article 4 for consultations. NATO also warned against overreacting to drone incidents. Japan said it would send officers to NATO headquarters to support Ukraine.
by WorldBrief & Maksim Micheliov | AI-generated summary
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