U.S. Readiness and Alliance Burden-Sharing Pressure

Submarine maintenance delays have cost 15,000 operational days and $3.4 billion, while the Pentagon faces a $285 billion facilities backlog and persistent shipbuilding and workforce constraints. Northern Viking interoperability, aging allied fleets, U.S. pressure on NATO partners, Poland's rejection of hosting U.S. nuclear weapons, and deployed-force strain all point to unresolved readiness and alliance-capacity risks.