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President Donald Trump said Saturday that he may further reduce the U.S. military presence in Germany, expanding on a recent order to withdraw about 5,000 troops from the country.
“We are going to cut way down, and we’re cutting a lot further than 5,000,” the president told reporters before boarding Air Force One in Palm Beach, Florida.
The comments come as tensions rise between Washington and European allies, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, over U.S. military operations involving Iran and the ongoing disruption in the Strait of Hormuz.
Merz recently said Iran was “humiliating” the United States in the standoff, criticism that has drawn sharp responses from Trump.
The planned troop reductions could affect units slated for deployment in Europe, including a long-range fires battalion established during the Biden administration.
Senior lawmakers from both chambers raised concerns about the move. Sens. Roger Wicker and Mike Rogers, who chair the Senate and House Armed Services Committees, respectively, urged a more cautious approach.
“Rather than withdrawing forces from the continent altogether, it is in the U.S. interest to maintain a strong deterrent in Europe by moving these 5,000 U.S. forces to the east,” they said in a joint statement.
They also emphasized the importance of coordination with allies and Congress.
“Significant changes like this to U.S. military operations require a deliberate review process and close coordination with Congress and our allies,” the lawmakers said, adding they expect further engagement from the Defense Department on the decision’s broader implications.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul also said Sunday that Germany supports a negotiated solution to the war with Iran and that the U.S. is a close ally.
“As a close U.S. ally, we share the same goal: Iran must completely and verifiably renounce nuclear weapons and immediately release the Strait of Hormuz, as @SecRubio also demands,” Wadephul posted on X.