An announcement by the Trump Administration that the United States would withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany has shaken America’s European allies, but it may just be the beginning of a much wider withdrawal.
The Pentagon said Friday that the decision to withdraw the troops came after a “thorough review of the Department’s force posture in Europe and is in recognition of theater requirements and conditions on the ground.”
But when asked by reporters Saturday about the move, President Donald Trump said that even more troop withdrawals could follow, representing a dramatic scale-back of the U.S. commitment to European security.
“We’re going to cut way down,” Trump said in Florida. “And we’re cutting a lot further than 5,000.”
Trump’s move came amid long-simmering tensions between the U.S. and its longtime European allies, particularly over the war in Iran. Trump has expressed anger at fellow NATO members after they refused to provide aid to the U.S. and Israel’s war.
When Europe declined to send warships to help open the Strait of Hormuz, he called NATO “useless” and “cowards,” and has since been seemingly trying to punish his European allies. Internal Pentagon documents found that the U.S. was considering a review of U.S. diplomatic support for European countries’ “imperial possessions,” such as the Falkland Islands, and was floating the idea of suspending Spain from NATO.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in particular earned Trump’s ire after criticizing the Iran war last week, saying the U.S. is being “humiliated” by the prolonged conflict.
“The Iranians are obviously very skilled at negotiating, or rather, very skillful at not negotiating, letting the Americans travel to Islamabad and then leave again without any result,” Merz said on Monday.
Trump has threatened for years to draw down U.S. troop numbers in Germany, saying in his first term that he would cut 9,500. He failed to do so before former President Joe Biden entered office, at which point the plan was formally stopped.
Germany’s Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said the move was “anticipated.” Even with the withdrawal, Germany will still host 30,000 American troops. Still, he told German news agency dpa that Germany welcomes the U.S. troop commitment.
“The presence of American troops in Europe, and particularly in Germany, lies in our interest and in the interest of the U.S.,” he said.
As Trump signals a shift in his priorities on Europe, several Republican lawmakers on the Armed Services Committee released a statement this weekend declaring they were “very concerned” over the troop withdrawal. “Germany has stepped up in response to President Trump’s call for greater burden sharing, significantly increasing defense spending and providing seamless access, basing, and overflight for U.S. forces in support of Operation Epic Fury,” said Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama in a joint statement.
In withdrawing troops, these lawmakers argue the U.S. could send “the wrong signal to Vladimir Putin” and Russia as the country continues its invasion of U.S. ally Ukraine.
But drawing down troops in Germany is not the only signal Trump is sending about leaving Europe behind.
Spain and Italy could be next
There are tens of thousands of troops operating elsewhere in Europe beyond Germany—many deployed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine—and these troops in other countries could be the next to leave the region.
Trump threatened that he would “probably” pull back troops from Spain and Italy too, as his relationship with the nations’ leaders continues to deteriorate.
“Why shouldn’t I? Italy has not been of any help to us and Spain has been horrible. Absolutely horrible,” he told reporters at the White House on Thursday, arguing that the U.S. helped Europe defend Ukraine from Russia’s invasion, but Europe did not do the same in Iran.
Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, in particular, has clashed with Trump after calling U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran “illegal” and refusing U.S. access to Spain’s joint-military bases to continue their assault.
Italy also denied a U.S. military aircraft use of a Sicilian airbase, citing the U.S. military’s failure to seek prior authorization —and, unlike Spain, Italy’s conservative leader, Giorgia Meloni, had once been a staunch ally of Trump in Europe.
After the Iran war, and Meloni’s defense of Pope Leo after Trump’s attacks on the Pontiff, Trump called her “unacceptable.”
“Because she doesn’t care if Iran has a nuclear weapon and would blow up Italy in two minutes if it had the chance,” he continued.
NATO allies told to expect delays in weapons deliveries
At the same time as the drawdown, the Pentagon has told NATO allies across Europe to expect weapons delays as the U.S. works to replenish its own weapons stockpiles used during the Iran war.
The U.K., Poland, and Lithuania are among the countries expecting delays, the Financial Times reported, but these stockpile delays also heighten concerns about Ukraine’s shortages of U.S.-made missile systems used against Russia.
Ukraine was already facing a shortage of U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems, $4 million-a-piece munitions it uses to shoot down ballistic missiles and drones. The Financial Times reports that these new weapon delays will also affect munitions for HIMARS and NASAMS missile systems. The HIMARS system is a highly mobile rocket system used in Ukraine.
European Union Defense and Space Commissioner Andrius Kubilius said in March that the outlook for Ukraine was “critical,” and said the E.U. would need to “develop missile production in a very urgent and very rapid way.”
The war in Iran has also intensified concerns about whether the U.S. has enough weapons stockpiles to deter China from a potential invasion of Taiwan.
Trump, for his part, dismissed concerns over U.S. stockpiles on Friday: “All over the world, we have inventory, and we can take that if we need it,” he said.
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