NATO allies say Hegseth "missing a good party" as they meet, adjust to slimmed down U.S. role under Trump
CBSN
Brussels — European allies at NATO on Thursday brushed aside concerns that the United States has stepped back from its leadership role of the world's biggest security organization, leaving them and Canada to do the lion's share of defending Europe. In:
Brussels — European allies at NATO on Thursday brushed aside concerns that the United States has stepped back from its leadership role of the world's biggest security organization, leaving them and Canada to do the lion's share of defending Europe.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not attend Thursday's gathering of defense ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels. His no-show came after Secretary of State Marco Rubio skipped the last meeting of NATO foreign ministers in December.
It's rare for members of a U.S. administration to miss a meeting of the organization's top decision-making body, the North Atlantic Council, at the ministerial level, let alone two meetings in a row.
U.S. Under Secretary of Defense Elbridge Colby was sent in Hegseth's place.
"Sadly for him, he is missing a good party," Icelandic Foreign Minister Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir told reporters. "Of course, it's always better that the ministers attend here, but I would not describe it as a bad signal."

The ice dance competition of the 2026 Winter Olympics may be over, but many fans can't stop talking about Madison Chock and Evan Bates' performance — or France's controversial win after the judges' scores left the Americans just 1.43 points shy of gold. Kiki Intarasuwan and The Associated Press contributed to this report. In:












