From
the BBC:
“US
to cut troop levels in Germany by 5,000 amid Trump spat with Merz”
The
US Department of Defence plans to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany, amid a
spat between US President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz
over the war with Iran. The decision comes a day after Trump criticised Merz,
who suggested the US had been "humiliated" by Iranian negotiators. In
social media posts on Thursday, Trump said Merz was "doing a terrible
job" and had "problems of all kinds", including on immigration
and energy. Trump has also suggested pulling US troops from Italy and Spain.
The
US has a significant military presence in Germany, with more than 36,000 active
duty troops assigned to bases across the country as of last December. In a
statement, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the order had come from
Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth. "This decision follows a thorough
review of the Department's force posture in Europe and is in recognition of
theater requirements and conditions on the ground," he said. "We
expect the withdrawal to be completed over the next six to twelve months."
Trump,
a longtime critic of the Nato alliance, has been lashing out at allies over
their refusal to participate in operations to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Asked
on Thursday whether he would also consider pulling US troops from Nato allies
Italy and Spain, Trump responded: "I probably will - look, why shouldn't
I?" "Italy has not been of any help to us and Spain has been
horrible," he added, criticising them for their response to the war in
Iran. "In all cases they said, 'I don't want to get involved.'"
Merz
told university students earlier this week that "the Americans clearly
have no strategy" and he could not see "what strategic exit"
they might choose. "The Iranians are obviously very skilled at
negotiating, or rather, very skilful at not negotiating, letting the Americans
travel to Islamabad and then leave again without any result," he said. He
added that the "entire nation" was being "humiliated" by
the Iranian leadership. In response, Trump took to his platform Truth Social,
where he said Merz thought it was "OK for Iran to have a Nuclear
Weapon" and "doesn't know what he's talking about". "No
wonder Germany is doing so poorly, both Economically, and otherwise!" the
post read.
The
US military deployment in Germany is by far its biggest in Europe, with about
12,000 troops in Italy and a further 10,000 in the UK. Many are stationed at
Ramstein Air Base outside the south-western German city of Kaiserslautern. And
while Trump has proposed US troop reductions in Germany before, they have so
far not come in to effect.
Only
Japan hosts a larger US troop presence. In 2020, a proposal to move 12,000 US
troops from Germany either to other Nato countries in Europe or back to the US
was blocked by Congress and then reversed by President Joe Biden. At the time,
Trump had accused Germany of being "delinquent" because its military
spending was well below Nato's target of 2% of economic output (GDP). But that
has changed dramatically under the Merz government. Germany is projected to
spend €105.8bn (£91bn) in 2027 - with total defence expenditure next year set
to reach 3.1% of GDP.
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