Flightlines » Breedlove may get the ‘force structure pause’ he’s been asking for all along: Pentagon leaders may not go through with downsizing U.S. military forces in Europe given the continuous problem of Russia’s behavior in the east, Gen. Philip Breedlove, commander, U.S. European Command and NATO Supreme Allied Commander, told reporters during a Pentagon news conference Sept. 16.
“I have talked to leadership here about a function to re-address those decisions,” Breedlove said days after NATO leaders met in Wales to discuss the alliance’s response to the crisis in Ukraine. “Because those sequester decisions were clearly made before Russia-Crimea, I see this building now moving towards a review of those decisions.”
In an interview with Air Force Times Sept. 2, Breedlove said he has continuously asked defense leaders to “take a knee” and determine what cuts are appropriate given the current climate in Eastern Europe:
