Washington, D.C. –U.S. Representative Mike Rogers (R-AL), Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, delivered the following opening remarks at a hearing on U.S. military posture and national security challenges in Europe.
Chairman Rogers’ remarks as prepared for delivery:
Today we continue our posture hearings with EUCOM.
I want to thank our witnesses for being here.
General Cavoli, as this will be your final appearance before us, I want to extend my sincere gratitude for your service to our nation.
We gather today with heavy hearts after the loss of four American servicemembers in a tragic training accident in Lithuania.
Thank you to our Lithuanian and Polish allies for sparing no resource to recover our fallen.
Now, let me open with something fundamental.
Vladimir Putin is not our friend.
He is an unreformed KGB agent who believes the collapse of the Soviet Union was “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century.”
His desire to reconstitute the Soviet Union drove him to attack Georgia in 2008, invade Crimea and the Donbas in 2014, and then launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Those who blame NATO enlargement or suggest that Russia was somehow provoked into attacking Ukraine are wrong.
The Ukrainian people have fought bravely for over three years to defend their freedom.
But I agree with President Trump—it’s time to stop the bloodshed.
President Biden never had a plan to end the war.
By slow-rolling weapon deliveries and imposing loophole-ridden sanctions, he allowed the conflict to grind into a stalemate.
But President Trump has broken the deadlock.
Ukraine has agreed to a ceasefire as a first step—showing its desire for peace.
Russia, however, has refused to do the same—and continues to slaughter innocent civilians.
Just last week, Russia bombed a playground, killing nine children.
Murdering innocent Ukrainian children does not advance peace.
President Trump was right to warn Putin that if he doesn’t start negotiating in good faith soon, then the U.S. will rachet up pressure and impose unprecedented sanctions.
Because, as President Trump knows, Putin only respects strength—and he has acted accordingly.
He sanctioned Nord Stream 2.
He withdrew from the INF Treaty after Russian violations.
He sent additional U.S. troops to Poland.
And he armed Ukraine with anti-tank missiles—not blankets.
That’s why Putin didn’t invade Ukraine during President Trump’s first term.
And that’s also why Putin must prove he is serious about peace—and soon.
We cannot let Russia drag out these negotiations.
Now, while I agree that China is our pacing threat, we must remain tough and unwavering in the face of Russia’s enduring threat.
Because the reality is Russia maintains the world’s largest and most diverse nuclear arsenal.
And despite suffering massive losses in Ukraine, the Russian Army is now larger than it was before the war.
The Russian military is also reconstituting faster than expected.
And its industrial base is on a war footing—and being supported by China, North Korea and Iran.
Given these threats, I’m concerned by reports that some at DoD are considering not only giving up NATO Command, but also significantly reducing our posture in Europe.
I’m especially concerned that Congress has not been consulted.
U.S. leadership in NATO is essential to ensure American forces—including our nuclear weapons—always remain under U.S. command.
And cutting our presence in Europe now—especially on NATO’s eastern flank—would only weaken our leverage with Putin.
Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, our European NATO allies are finally getting serious about investing in the alliance’s collective defense.
For the first time, it appears Europe is willing to shoulder most of the burden.
This is how it should be.
And it’s not just Poland, Romania, Finland, and the Baltic states.
Allies across the alliance are ramping up their defense spending.
But Europe’s rearmament will take time.
Pulling back prematurely would risk inviting further Russian aggression—potentially even against NATO.
That’s why I strongly support maintaining the current U.S. force posture in Europe at this time.
I look forward to hearing from our witnesses on how the U.S. and our NATO allies can ensure credible deterrence against Russia.
