Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the withdrawal of approximately 5,000 US troops from Germany over the next six to twelve months, the Pentagon confirmed Friday, in a decision framed officially as a “thorough review of the Department’s force posture in Europe” but executed within days of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz publicly criticising American strategy in Iran and describing the US as being “humiliated” by Iranian leadership.
Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said in his brief statement: “This decision follows a thorough review of the Department’s force posture in Europe and is in recognition of theater requirements and conditions on the ground. We expect the withdrawal to be completed over the next six to twelve months.”
Germany currently hosts approximately 35,000 to 38,000 permanent and rotational US forces across installations including Ramstein Air Base, Grafenwoehr Training Area, Wiesbaden, Stuttgart, and Bavaria, making it by far the largest single concentration of American military personnel in Europe and representing a presence that has been a cornerstone of NATO’s collective defence architecture since the end of World War II.
The withdrawal would leave more than 30,000 US troops in Germany, reversing a portion of the buildup that began under President Biden following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, but still maintaining a significant presence that senior NATO officials have been urging Washington to sustain as the alliance navigates the dual pressures of the Iran war and continued Russian military activity on the European continent.
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius sought to project calm in his public response, saying the decision was “anticipated” and that Germany is ready to shoulder more of the burden of its own defence, adding that “the presence of American troops in Europe, and particularly in Germany, lies in our interest and in the interest of the US.” He also said that if Germany is to remain a transatlantic partner, it must work to strengthen the European pillar within NATO.
A senior Pentagon official said the removal of 5,000 troops “sends a very clear signal about how important it is for Germany and other allies to take primary responsibility for Europe’s defense,” and said the withdrawal aligns with the Trump administration’s priorities on the Western Hemisphere and the Indo-Pacific, framing the European drawdown as a rebalancing toward other strategic theatres rather than a punitive response to German criticism.
The National Defense Authorization Act for 2026 restricts the Pentagon from reducing troop levels in the European theatre below 76,000 without the defense secretary certifying to Congress that the decision was made in coordination with NATO allies, a legal requirement that the administration is technically navigating through the “force posture review” framing that allows Hegseth to characterise the withdrawal as an operational rather than political decision.
Trump’s relationship with NATO has been a consistent source of transatlantic anxiety throughout his second term, with the president repeatedly criticising European allies for inadequate support of the US-Iran war effort and questioning the alliance’s fundamental value proposition in terms that have prompted German, French, and British officials to accelerate their own defence investment discussions.
The timing relative to Merz’s criticism is the detail that makes the official “force posture review” framing difficult to accept at face value, with the sequence of events: Merz publicly criticises US Iran strategy, Trump responds on social media, Hegseth announces withdrawal, fitting the pattern of Trump administration responses to allied dissent that observers across both parties have documented throughout the first fifteen months of the second term.
Spain and Italy are separately cited by NPR reporting as potentially next in line for troop reductions, a suggestion the Pentagon declined to address directly, with the combination of the Germany announcement and the potential European cascade representing the most significant restructuring of US military presence on the continent since the Cold War’s end if it progresses beyond the current initial withdrawal.
Ewan is a reporter at the Foreign Policy Journal, primarily covering US current affairs and news related to NYSE-listed stocks. He has over two decades of experience in journalism and digital publishing.
