Defense Briefing

US sources confirm that America has exhausted 'nearly all' precision long-range missiles in the ongoing Iran war – a dramatic strategic weakening. This significantly deteriorates NATO's deterrence capability against Russia and endangers ongoing commitments in Europe and the Indo-Pacific. The incident fuels the debate on US military capabilities and allies' dependence on American weapons systems.

The Pentagon has officially initiated a review of US troop presence in Europe and signaled a structural withdrawal under the 'NATO 3.0' concept. Europe is to assume conventional defense of the continent within six months – a historic paradigm shift in transatlantic security architecture. In parallel, EU defense spending reaches a record 454 billion euros in 2026 and for the first time surpasses China and Russia combined.

The Ukrainian General Staff reports a new record of Russian losses in July 2026 of 42,860 killed – an increase of around 3,000 compared to the previous month. Despite these unprecedented losses, Russia achieves its fastest territorial gains since January in the same period with 106 km², while simultaneously experiencing dramatically deteriorated Ukrainian positions in Dobropillia and Druzhkivka. The opposing trend shows: Russia accepts extreme losses to maintain operational pressure.

A massive security breach has made highly classified US attack plans against Iran public – a new debacle for the Trump administration following the Signal Gate scandal. The incident reveals systemic weaknesses in handling classified information and is likely to alarm allies such as NATO partners, who must be guaranteed operational security in joint planning. The leak comes at a critical time of active negotiations and potential follow-up operations against Iran.

A new analysis identifies Ireland's nearly unprotected Atlantic Ocean as a critical gap in European defense – particularly relevant for submarine cables, energy infrastructure, and maritime supply lines. Since Ireland is not a NATO member, there is no automatic protection by the alliance, while Russia has intensified its underwater activities in the North Atlantic. The debate gains considerable strategic significance in light of US troop withdrawal and NATO 3.0 discussions.