The United States Department of War released its National Defense Strategy 2026, which prioritizes the defense of the US homeland and its interests in the Western Hemisphere. It is consistent with the idea: “America first. Peace through strength. Common sense.”
The documentary focuses on China, Russia and Iran. It mentions “China” 22 times, “Russia” 13 times, Iran 11 times, and Korea 13 times.
The text does not mention “India” even once. This is seen as a significant departure from previous strategies (2017, 2022) which saw India as a “major defense partner”.
What does the document say about China?
The US has pledged to deter China in the Indo-Pacific through “force, not confrontation”. His goal is to create “a position of military strength from which President Trump can negotiate favorable terms for our nation.”
The document states that US President Donald Trump seeks stable peace, fair trade and respectful relations with China. “He has demonstrated that he is willing to engage President Xi Jinping directly to achieve these goals,” the documents said.
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The US will build “strong defenses against denial” along the First Island Chain (FIC) and seek a “decent peace” rather than regime change in Beijing.
In line with President Trump’s idea of negotiating “from a position of strength,” the War Department said it “will seek and open a wider range of military-to-military communications with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) with a focus on promoting strategic stability with Beijing, as well as deconfliction and de-escalation, more generally.”
But the ministry clarified that the U.S.’s goal “is not to dominate China, nor to strangle or humiliate it.”
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It’s pretty simple: “To prevent anyone, including China, from being able to dominate us or our allies – essentially setting the military conditions necessary to achieve the NSS’s goal of a balance of power in the Indo-Pacific that allows us all to enjoy a decent peace.”
“We will be strong, but not unnecessarily confrontational,” the documents state. The ministry went on to seek allies’ support in dealing with China or other deterrents, saying, “Our allies will do so not as a favor to us, but out of their own interests.”
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She set the condition for Europe: “In Europe and other theaters, the Allies will take the lead against threats that are less serious to us but more serious to them, with critical but more limited support from the United States.”
Iran
The US War Department described the Iranian regime as “weaker and more vulnerable than it has been in decades”. It states: “Iran’s ‘Axis of Resistance’ is similarly devastated.”
According to the latest US strategy, the War Department will “empower regional allies and partners to assume primary responsibility
deterrence and defense against Iran and its proxies, including strong support for Israel’s efforts to defend itself; deepening cooperation with our partners in the Persian Gulf; and enabling integration between Israel and our Arab Gulf partners based on President Trump’s historic initiative, the Abraham Accords.”
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He calls Israel a “model ally” and says the US will “further empower it (Israel) to defend itself and advance our common interests, building on President Trump’s historic efforts to bring peace to the Middle East.”
“Similarly, in the Persian Gulf, US partners are increasingly willing and able to do more to defend against Iran and its proxies, including acquiring and deploying various US military systems.
Africa
The department’s priority in Africa is to prevent Islamic terrorists from using regional safe havens to strike the US homeland.
The US has said it is prepared to take direct action against Islamic terrorists “who are capable and intend to strike the US homeland, including in close coordination with interagency and foreign partners.”
“At the same time, we will seek to empower allies and partners to lead efforts to degrade and destroy other terrorist organizations,” the US Department of Defense said.
Korean Peninsula
The U.S. Department of Defense says South Korea is capable of assuming primary responsibility for deterring North Korea with critical but more limited U.S. support. He notes that South Korea also has “the will to do so, given that it faces a direct and clear threat from North Korea.”
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“This shift in the balance of responsibility is consistent with America’s interest in updating the posture of US forces on the Korean Peninsula. In this way, we can ensure a strong US interest in the Western Hemisphere,” the ministry said.
A War Department document said American interests were also “at risk throughout the Western Hemisphere.”
Russia
The US department will ensure US forces are ready to defend against Russian threats to the US homeland, the document says.
“The Department will also continue to play a critical role within NATO itself, even as we calibrate US force posture and activities in the European space to better match the Russian threat to US interests and our allies’ own capabilities,” the US said.
It argued that Moscow was “in no position to bid for European hegemony”.
“European NATO surpasses Russia in economic scale, population and therefore latent military power. At the same time, while Europe remains important, it has a smaller and declining share of global economic power,” the ministry says.
