Donald Trump
The U.S. leader commented on the military withdrawal while speaking to reporters in West Palm Beach, Fla.
“We’re going to cut back significantly. And we’re reducing much more than 5,000 military,” Trump said in response to a related question.
Germany doesn’t mind
Earlier, the Pentagon said that the United States will withdraw 5,000 US troops from Germany over the next 6-12 months.
At the same time, Germany will still have more than 30 thousand American soldiers – this country ranks second in the world in terms of the number of deployed U.S. military personnel, second only to Japan, where about 50-55 thousand troops are stationed.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius took the news that 5,000 U.S. troops would leave his country calmly. Pistorius said the drawdown, which Trump has threatened for years, was expected and that European countries need to take more responsibility for their own defense.
But he also emphasized that security cooperation benefits both sides of the transatlantic partnership.
Why the U.S. is withdrawing its military
Senior Defense Department officials, in an interview with CBS News on Friday, described the 5,000 troop drawdown as a signal of Trump’s dissatisfaction with the level of help European allies have offered in the U.S.-Iran war.
Personally, Trump has publicly criticized German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and the leaders of other NATO member states for not being directly involved in the war.
