Trump's crisis with NATO worsens with the withdrawal of 5,000 soldiers from Germany
The measure responds to the Republican's discontent over the lack of European support in the war with Iran
BarcelonaThe President of the United States, Donald Trump, will withdraw 5,000 American soldiers from their bases in Germany, as a result of his discontent with the lack of support from his European allies in the war against Iran. The withdrawal will be carried out within a period of six months to one year. “The Secretary of Defense has ordered the withdrawal of approximately 5,000 soldiers from Germany. This decision comes after an exhaustive review of the Department's military deployment in Europe and responds to the needs and conditions of the theater of operations,” explained Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell, cited on X by journalist Kellie Meyer of Newsmax.
Upon learning the news, the German Minister of Defense, Boris Pistorius, stated this Saturday that the partial withdrawal of American soldiers from Germany was foreseeable, but that the Pentagon's announcement makes it clear that Europe must assume more responsibility for its own security.
“It is clear: within NATO we must become more European to remain transatlantic. In other words: we Europeans must assume greater responsibility for our own security,” Pistorius said in a statement distributed via the German Ministry of Defense's WhatsApp channel.
On Wednesday, Trump had already threatened Berlin with withdrawing his troops from the country. Hours later, on Thursday, he also threatened to do so with those deployed in Spain and Italy. The Republican's attacks against European allies have intensified since EU countries have not provided the support Washington expected for the war against Iran.
Against the criticisms of the German chancellor
The announcement of the troop withdrawal is also interpreted as a reaction to the criticisms of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who accused Trump of having been “humiliated” by Tehran in the negotiations to reach an agreement.
On Friday, Trump warned Merz that he should focus more on ‘fixing’ his ‘broken’ country and ending the war in Ukraine, rather than ‘interfering’ in the conflict with Iran, in a new barrage in the exchange of criticisms between the two leaders. The Republican accused the European leader of not supporting the US in the war against Iran and of believing “it is okay for Iran to have a nuclear weapon”, in addition to emphasizing that “it is for good reason that Germany is doing so poorly, both economically and in other aspects”. Merz initially supported the American and Israeli attacks against Iran. However, over time he has adopted an increasingly critical stance, a fact that has earned him the Republican's reproaches.
Currently, the American army has a massive presence in Germany, with more than 36,000 active-duty soldiers distributed across various key facilities in the country, including Ramstein Air Base, the headquarters in Wiesbaden, the training areas of Grafenwöhr and Hohenfels in Bavaria, Spangdahlem Air Base, and the Stuttgart military complex.