Americans Wary of European Defense Force: WASHINGTON - Plans by the European Union to develop its own 60,000-troop military force, while officially welcomed in Washington, have alarmed influential U.S. national security figures who warn that such a force could seriously weaken NATO. For years, in conflicts ranging from the Gulf War to Kosovo, U.S. leaders have urged Europeans to shoulder more responsibility for keeping the peace on their continent. But now that the 15-nation European Union has decided to create its own army within two years, some Americans fear the move is an attempt to exclude the United States from allied military decisions.