In the new US National Defense Strategy released by the Pentagon, Russia is described as a “persistent but manageable threat” to NATO’s eastern members. The document marks a shift in emphasis from the 2022 version: whereas countering China was then identified as the United States’ primary defense task, the focus now is on the need to deter Beijing “through strength, not confrontation.” The strategy stresses that President Trump is pursuing a “stable peace, fair trade, and respectful relations with China” and is open to direct dialogue with Chinese President Xi Jinping, while simultaneously insisting that negotiations be conducted from a position of strength. In the 2018 document, China and Russia were labeled the “principal threats” to US security.
The strategy also places particular emphasis on securing “US military and commercial access to key territories,” including the Panama Canal, the American Gulf—as the United States now refers to the Gulf of Mexico—and Greenland. It further states a willingness to provide President Trump with “credible military options against narco-terrorists, wherever they may be located.”
Russia is addressed in a separate chapter of the strategy. It emphasizes that, despite demographic and economic constraints, Moscow retains substantial military and industrial capacity. The ongoing war in Ukraine, according to the Pentagon’s assessment, demonstrates that Russia possesses the resources and national resolve sufficient to sustain a prolonged conflict in its near abroad.
The document calls for maintaining the readiness of US forces to counter Russian threats on US territory and reaffirms Washington’s intention to preserve a “vital role in NATO,” even as the American military presence on the European theater is adjusted. At the same time, the strategy argues that Russia is incapable of aspiring to European hegemony: NATO’s European members significantly surpass it in economic output, population size, and, as a result, latent military power.
The authors of the document stress that, while the United States continues—and will continue—to be engaged in European affairs, Washington’s priorities remain the defense of its own territory and the deterrence of China. NATO allies, it notes, are well positioned to assume primary responsibility for Europe’s defense, with critically important but more limited US support, including a leading role in sustaining Ukraine’s defense. The document cites President Trump’s view that the war in Ukraine must come to an end, but that responsibility for achieving this outcome rests first and foremost with Europe.
In early December 2025, the administration of Donald Trump also unveiled a new National Security Strategy—a document setting out the principles and priorities of US foreign and defense policy. It codifies radical shifts already put into practice: abandoning the pursuit of global dominance, sharpening the focus on Latin America and Asia, and relegating Europe and the Middle East to a secondary position. The Russia–Ukraine war is confined to a single paragraph, which states the US desire to bring the fighting to an end as quickly as possible and to initiate economic reconstruction. The document, however, contains no criticism of Russian aggression.