Armed Services Republicans ‘very concerned’ about US troops withdrawal from Germany
The chairmen of the House and Senate Armed Service committees on Saturday expressed they are “very concerned” about the withdrawal of 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany amid President Trump’s feud with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.
Trump on Wednesday had announced that he was reviewing a possible reduction of U.S. troops in Germany.
“We are very concerned by the decision to withdraw a U.S. brigade from Germany,” the chairs, Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Ala.), said in a joint statement . “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.”
Wicker and Rogers said that “prematurely reducing” the U.S. military presence in Europe “sends the wrong signal” to Russian President Vladimir Putin. They argue that an assessment on permitting European allies to assume primary responsibility, as they “move toward spending 5% of GDP on defense… will take time.”
The chairmen suggested that rather than removing the troops out of Europe entirely, they should be forwarded to the east. They also insisted that “significant” changes to the U.S.’s posture in Europe demands “a deliberate review process.”
“We expect the Department to engage with its oversight committees in the days and weeks ahead on this decision and its implications for U.S. deterrence and transatlantic security,” the statement concludes.
Wicker and Rogers previously criticized the withdrawal of service members from Romania last fall, saying they opposed the Pentagon’s process for its ongoing force posture review. They said it could lead to “further drawdowns of U.S. forces from Eastern Europe.”
Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell on Friday said the withdrawal is expected to be completed over the next six to 12 months. The decision to withdraw the troops comes after the Defense Department reviewed the U.S. posture in Europe.
The announcement of the withdrawal followed Trump’s criticism of Merz, who he claimed miscalculated the threat of a nuclear Iran. He said Merz should redirect his focus from weighing in on the U.S. conflict with Iran toward Russia’s war in Ukraine “and fixing his broken Country.”
Trump has blasted Merz and other NATO allies for not stepping up to work with the U.S. in carrying out “Operation Epic Fury” in Iran.
Merz told German students on Monday that the U.S. “clearly” has no “strategic plan” with the war in Iran.
“Especially since the Iranians are negotiating very skillfully — or rather, very skillfully not negotiating,” he said, according to The Associated Press . “And then letting the Americans travel to Islamabad, only to send them back without any results. An entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership, especially by these so-called Revolutionary Guards.”
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