US President Donald Trump said Saturday that the United States will significantly reduce its troop presence in Germany, escalating a dispute with Chancellor Friedrich Merz as the administration presses allies to take on more of the defense burden. Trump, speaking to reporters in Florida, said the pending move would go beyond the earlier Pentagon plan to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany.
Trump said, “We’re going to cut way down. And we’re cutting a lot further than 5,000,” according to the Associated Press report. The Pentagon, which on Friday had announced the 5,000-troop drawdown, did not provide additional explanation when asked about the larger reduction Trump described Saturday.
Germany’s defense minister, Boris Pistorius, told dpa that he expected the drawdown Trump has threatened for years, and that European nations need to assume more responsibility for their own defense. Pistorius also said the presence of American soldiers in Europe, and especially in Germany, benefits both sides of the trans-Atlantic partnership, telling dpa, “The presence of American soldiers in Europe, and especially in Germany, is in our interest and in the interest of the U.S.”
The planned withdrawal drew rapid political reaction in Washington. The Pentagon’s Friday announcement followed swift criticism in Congress, with bipartisan resistance that included Democrats objecting and Republicans expressing concern about the potential impact on deterrence and signaling to Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose full-scale invasion of Ukraine recently entered its fifth year.
Republican leaders of both armed services committees in Congress said Saturday they were “very concerned” about the troop withdrawal, according to a joint statement by Sen. Roger Wicker and Rep. Mike Rogers. They warned that the decision could “undermine deterrence and sending the wrong signal to Vladimir Putin,” while also saying they were told the Pentagon had canceled the planned deployment of the Army’s Long-Range Fires Battalion; the Pentagon statement announcing the 5,000-troop withdrawal did not mention that cancellation.
NATO said it was seeking details. NATO spokesperson Allison Hart, in a post on X, said the alliance was “working with the U.S. to understand the details of their decision on force posture in Germany.” Hart added that the adjustment underscored the need for Europe to keep investing more in defense and take on a greater share of responsibility for shared security, noting NATO’s progress toward an agreement that allies each invest 5% of their economic output to defense.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement that the decision followed a “thorough review” of the Department of Defense’s force posture in Europe and reflected “theater requirements and conditions on the ground.” A U.S. defense official speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters told AP that U.S. military branches did not have prior knowledge and learned about the drawdown “in real time.”
According to the Pentagon, the withdrawal of the 5,000 troops is scheduled to take place over the next six to 12 months. The Associated Press report said the drawdown would amount to about one-seventh of the roughly 36,000 American service members stationed in Germany. The Pentagon offered few details about which troops or operations would be affected, and when contacted after Trump’s announcement Saturday, the Pentagon referred AP back to its earlier statement.
The United States increased its European deployment after Russia launched its full-scale war on Ukraine in February 2022, and NATO allies including Germany have expected for more than a year that U.S. troops would be among the first to leave. AP reported that Germany hosts several American military facilities, including Ramstein Air Base and a medical center in Landstuhl, where casualties from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were treated, and that U.S. nuclear missiles are also stationed in the country.
The Associated Press report said some U.S. troops in Germany come from the Army and Air Force, and that a withdrawal of 5,000 troops—described as the size of a brigade combat team—would likely have limited impact on combat power, but could have a larger effect in messaging about U.S. commitment. Another U.S. defense official said, “in terms of messaging of U.S. commitment though, it’s very different,” while discussing the implications of the drawdown plan.
The dispute between Washington and European partners has also widened into other areas, with Trump publicly criticizing European leaders over their approach to the war involving Iran and over what he has said are failures to meet commitments. AP reported that Trump last week criticized Merz’s comments on the Iran war and also accused the European Union of not complying with its U.S. trade deal, while announcing plans to increase tariffs next week on cars and trucks produced in the bloc to 25%.