(AFP) – President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the United States is considering reducing the number of its troops in Germany, amid a row with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz over the Iran war. “The United States is studying and reviewing the possible reduction of Troops in Germany, with a determination to be made over the next short period of time,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. The United States had more than 35,000 troops in Germany in 2024, according to the Congressional Research Service, although the number is now believed to be higher, with German media saying it’s nearer 50,000.
During both of his terms in office, Trump has made a number of threats to slash US troop numbers in Germany and other European allies as part of his criticism of the NATO alliance. But Washington now appears determined to punish allies who have failed to back the US-Israeli war in Iran or contribute to a peacekeeping force in the crucial Strait of Hormuz. Hours before Trump’s post about troop numbers in Germany, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke by telephone with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul. Rubio and Wadephul discussed Iran and the importance of securing freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said.
Merz has become a target of Trump’s ire after saying earlier this week that Iran is “humiliating” Washington at the negotiating table. Trump said on Tuesday that Merz “thinks it’s OK for Iran to have a Nuclear Weapon. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about!” The German leader played down the row on Wednesday, insisting they were still on good terms. “From my point of view, the personal relationship between the American president and myself remains just as good as before,” Merz told a press conference in Berlin.
The German leader said he had expressed doubts about the US-Israeli war on Iran from the start, adding: “We in Germany and in Europe are suffering considerably from the consequences.” Washington appears to be considering other retaliatory measures against Western allies who have not helped against Iran. Last week, a report said that the United States was considering trying to suspend Spain from NATO, and that it could review its position on Britain’s control of the Falkland Islands. Washington later reiterated its neutrality over the contested sovereignty of the Falkland Islands between Argentina and Britain, which fought a short but bloody war over the archipelago in 1982 that Britain won.
– Danny KEMP
© 2024 AFP
