Defense secretary signals some US troops might be redeployed to Western Hemisphere from Europe

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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Saturday that some U.S. service members could be redeployed from Europe to the Western Hemisphere as the Trump administration expands its military campaign against drug cartels in South America.

“Well, we’re definitely expanding our presence and our footprint in Central and South America with partners, and because of the bold move the president made in Venezuela,” Hegseth said, referring to the U.S. military’s successful capture of former Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. “We have a whole new suite of options economically and militarily with partnerships.”

Hegseth pointed to U.S. partnerships with Ecuador, Honduras, Guatemala and Panama, saying part of his responsibility is implementing the national security strategy and national defense strategy, “which makes [it] very clear that we want more burden sharing” in Europe.