US Army forced to borrow British helicopters amid budget cuts

[Geee]

UK Telegraph:

The US military contingent in Europe has been forced to borrow British helicopters and conduct training exercises with equipment loaned by other Nato members due to budget cutbacks.

 

America no longer has any tanks in Europe, and the number of US troops stationed there has decreased by more than a third since 2012. Many of the weapons used for Nato exercises rotate between bases in the US and in Europe.

Lt General Ben Hodges, the US Army's commander in Europe, said allies had increasingly been called upon to loan out vehicles and supplies, and that the use of British helicopters had been "essential".

 

That the world's most expensive military must now rely on borrowed hardware for its operations in Europe is indicative of the diminishing presence of the US armed forces on the continent. The Pentagon has been hampered by sharp cuts over the past several years, and what resources are available are increasingly targeted elsewhere, primarily in Asia and the Middle East.