NATO: US military presence in Europe

America’s carrier strike group – an array of warships – is a powerful symbol of America’s military power and a sign that it is committed to protecting allies and deterring adversaries.

Therefore the presence of such forces in the North Sea in the last few weeks is intended to reassure European allies, despite the political uncertainty at home.

America’s military power has helped protect Europe for the past 75 years – but the US presidential election raises the question: for how long?

Military commanders do their best to avoid politics.

But among the group of journalists invited aboard the USS Harry S Truman, the US presidential race was high on the agenda. The question was: does America still have Europe back?

Rear Adm. Sean Bailey said: “What I can tell you is that we are strongly committed to our alliance, strongly committed to Nato.”

But he is not the one who will be deciding US foreign policy, and his answer is likely to reduce doubt.

Germany’s Defense Minister, Boris Pistorius, knows change is in the air.

Asked about the possible impact of the US election on Europe last week, he said it was a question of whether America was doing “too little, or too little”.

He didn’t mince words, but Donald Trump is likely to do the least.

USS Harry S Truman proudly bears the name of the president who helped found NATO 75 years ago.

But a second Trump term could once again shake the coalition to its core.

Truman’s policy of providing military, economic and political support to countries under threat to democracy is very different from Trump’s America First policy.

He recently said that Russia “can do whatever the hell it wants” to allies who don’t spend enough on defense.

Any US withdrawal from Europe will leave a huge hole.

The USS Harry S Truman is a testament to what America brings in size and numbers – with 5,000 personnel and more than 60 aircraft.

A Royal Navy carrier, HMS Prince of Wales, sailing nearby, provided a reminder of Europe’s modest defences.

The British ship was sailing a squadron of several helicopters and eight F-35 jets – a pale reflection of the US warship.

In total the US has over 100,000 troops deployed in Europe.

When he was last president, Trump threatened to withdraw some of those forces. If he is elected he can do the same again.

Many Republicans believe that Europe should take care of itself. That’s the view of Elbridge Colby, the Pentagon’s top official in the last Trump administration.

He says the US should “withhold” its forces in Europe to focus on the threat posed by China.

The election will also have an impact on US military aid to Ukraine – America is its biggest military backer.

But a senior NATO official, who did not want to be named, recently told the BBC “regardless of who gets the share of the US contribution to Ukraine it will probably be reduced in terms”.

Europe, he said, cannot expect that the US will continue to offer a “substantial” contribution.

The reality is that America’s military focus is already shifting eastward to the Indo-Pacific region and the rise of China.

The Pentagon identifies China as its biggest security challenge. China now has a larger navy than the US. It builds a fleet the size of the entire Royal Navy every two years.

The sailors and pilots on the carrier see that there is a pivot to the east again.

Cdr Bernie Lutz spent most of his military career flying F-18s in US carrier operations in the Pacific and Middle East.

You can see why they are now sailing in European waters. “There’s a lot going on,” he said.

But he adds, “I think the Pacific theater is a big long-term goal”.

Like the other 5,000 crew members of the carrier, he has not been told where they will go next – but it has been widely reported that the USS Harry S Truman will be en route to the Middle East.

That region, too, will always be a challenge for whoever comes next.

Captain Dave Snowden says he’s happy to carry the banner of reducing the rate of escalation or preventing or even dangerous sailing – wherever the carrier is deployed.

But the lack of serious foreign policy debate in the election shows a reluctance to engage in more wars.

The United States will remain the world’s leading military power.

The question is how the next president will use it.