Sec. 1249. Oversight of United States military posture in Europe
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Until the date that is 60 days after the date on which the Commander of the United States European Command and the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the heads of other relevant Federal departments and agencies, have each, independently, submitted to the congressional defense committees the certification described in subsection
(b)and the applicable assessment described in subsection (c), none of the amounts authorized to be appropriated by this Act or otherwise made available for fiscal year 2026 may be obligated or expended— to reduce the total number of members of the Armed Forces permanently stationed in or deployed to the area of responsibility of the United States European Command below 76,000 for longer than a 45-day period; to divest, consolidate, or otherwise return to a host country any parcel of land or facility located on real property under the jurisdiction of the United States European Command as of June 1, 2025; to divest, redeploy, withdraw, or otherwise permanently move out of the area of responsibility of the United States European Command any Department of Defense equipment or physical property with an initial purchase value of more than $500,000 and positioned in such area of responsibility as of June 1, 2025; or to relinquish the role of the Commander of the United States European Command as North Atlantic Treaty Organization Supreme Allied Commander Europe. The certification described in this subsection is a certification that a proposed action described in any of paragraphs
(1)through
(4)of subsection (a)— is in the national security interest of the United States; and is being undertaken only after appropriate consultations with all North Atlantic Treaty Organization
(NATO)allies and relevant non-NATO partners. An assessment described in this subsection is the following: In the case of a proposed action described in any of paragraphs
(1)through
(3)of subsection (a)— an analysis of the impact of such an action on— the security of the United States; the ability of the Armed Forces to provide forward defense of the United States; NATO’s defense and deterrent posture against current and future Russian aggression, as well as the security of NATO as a whole; and the ability of the United States to meet national NATO capability targets, commitments to the NATO Force Model, regional and theater campaign plans, and other warfighting requirements; an analysis of the impact of such an action on the ability of the Armed Forces to execute contingency plans of the Department of Defense, including those in the area of responsibility of United States European Command or in support of operations and crisis response in the areas of responsibility of United States Central Command and United States Africa Command; a description of the specific requirements being prioritized that necessitate such an action; a detailed analysis of the costs, as a result of such an action, for relocation of personnel, equipment, and associated infrastructure; an analysis of the impact of such an action on military training and major military exercises, including on interoperability and joint activities with NATO allies and partners; a description of consultations regarding such an action with each NATO ally and all relevant non-NATO partners; an assessment of the impact of such an action on the credibility of United States extended deterrence commitments to NATO allies and the potential for nuclear proliferation in the European theater; an assessment of the impact of such an action on transatlantic cooperation to deter potential threats from the People’s Republic of China; and with respect to an assessment under this subparagraph relating to a proposed action described in subsection (a)(1), an articulation of the plan, generated in coordination with NATO allies, to ensure that other members of NATO have available capabilities and capacity to assume the roles and responsibilities of the United States Armed Forces to be withdrawn as a result of such action. In the case of a proposed action described in paragraph
(4)of subsection (a)— an explanation of the role of United States nuclear weapons in supporting NATO operations and activities following such action, including changes to command-and-control relationships and adjustments to the United States nuclear posture; a description of consultations regarding such action with all NATO allies and relevant non-NATO partners, including through the Nuclear Planning Group of NATO; an assessment of the impact of such action on the effectiveness of NATO nuclear deterrence; a risk assessment of— the nuclear capabilities of NATO allies; and the potential for nuclear proliferation in Europe; and a risk assessment of— the capability and capacity of nuclear-armed NATO allies to effectively deter and, if necessary, defeat likely adversaries in the nuclear domain absent a United States commander serving in the role of North Atlantic Treaty Organization Supreme Allied Commander Europe; changes to be made to existing United States contingency plans if other NATO member countries with nuclear capabilities were to provide extended nuclear deterrence to NATO; and the impact of such provision of extended nuclear deterrence on United States nuclear posture and deterrence planning requirements. In independently conducting the assessments described in clauses
(iv)and
(v)of paragraph (1)(B) with respect to a proposed action described in subsection (a)(4), the Secretary of Defense shall coordinate such assessment— with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, with respect to the independent risk assessment described in such clause (iv); and with the Commander of the United States Strategic Command, with respect to the independent assessment described in such clause (v). The certification described in subsection
(b)shall be submitted in unclassified form. The assessment described in subsection
(c)shall be submitted in unclassified form but may include a classified annex. Any assessment required under this section shall be submitted to the congressional defense committees without modification or alteration. The limitation under subsection
(a)shall terminate on December 31, 2027. Not later than April 15, 2026, and again not later than September 15, 2026, the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy shall provide to the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate and the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives a classified briefing on the implementation of the national defense strategy, including the policy and overall guidance for the governance of the global defense posture. The Under Secretary of Defense for Policy may not delegate the briefings required under this subsection. Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated by this Act or otherwise made available for fiscal year 2026 for operation and maintenance, defense-wide, and made available for the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy for travel expenses, not more than 50 percent may be obligated or expended unless the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy provides the first briefing to Congress required under paragraph
(1)not later than April 15, 2026.