EUCOM Commander Warns Pentagon Navy Lacks Destroyers to Keep Defending Israel

Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, head of U.S. European Command, sent a written notification to Pentagon officials in late July 2026 stating that without another Navy destroyer he would be forced to prioritize defense of the U.S. homeland over Israel, the Washington Post reported Aug. 1, citing unnamed officials. Two destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean and one in the Red Sea have been intercepting Iranian ballistic missiles aimed at Israel; months of near-daily operations tied to the ongoing war with Iran have strained the fleet's availability.

The warning illustrates how the open-ended conflict with Iran, which began in February 2026, is straining U.S. military resources across theaters and forcing commanders to weigh allied-defense commitments against protection of the American homeland, compounding earlier reports of dwindling Patriot interceptor stocks.

The notification followed standard military procedure for escalating unmet operational needs to senior Pentagon leadership; neither the Pentagon nor the White House had issued a public response as of Aug. 1.