Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell announced that the United States will withdraw about 5,000 of its troops stationed in Germany.
The Pentagon's announcement on Friday came after US President Donald Trump announced that he was considering the possibility of reducing the number of his country's military forces in Germany.
Parnell said about 5,000 U.S. troops stationed in Germany would be withdrawn and that the process could take between six and 12 months , given that Germany is the second-largest U.S. military base outside the U.S. after Japan.
In response to the Pentagon's decision, German television said the decision to withdraw the US military from Germany deepened the differences between Washington and Berlin.
Meretz and Trump's Response
The past few days have witnessed an argument between German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and US President Donald Trump, who wrote on the "Truth Social" platform on April 30, 2026, "Mertz understands nothing," and Trump called on Mertz to focus on ending the war between Russia and Ukraine, rather than "interfering in the affairs of those who are working to get rid of the Iranian nuclear threat."
Trump's comments followed criticism by Meretz on April 27, 2026, during a visit to a school in the state of Saurland, in which he said that the United States had failed to achieve a "quick strike" against Iran, and that the Iranian leadership was "insulting an entire nation," pointing to the lack of a clear negotiating strategy for Washington.
In his response, Trump accused Mertz of "not knowing what he is saying," and considered that his statements reflected the reasons for Germany's "economic deterioration," and a day later, Friday, May 1, 2026, Trump announced that the United States was backing down on reducing the number of its troops in Germany, hinting at a decision soon, and repeating his threat to withdraw troops from Italy and Spain due to their positions on the war on Iran.
On the other hand, Meretz confirmed at a press conference in Berlin that his personal relationship with Trump is "good" and that dialogue between them is continuing, avoiding commenting on threats of troop reductions and stressing the importance of the transatlantic partnership. These developments come after Mertz's visit to the White House on March 4, 2026, where Trump called him a "friend," before the relationship gradually deteriorated over the following weeks.
About 36,000 U.S. military personnel in Germany
Currently, there are about 36,400 U.S. troops stationed in active forces in Germany, so the withdrawal of 5,000 troops means the withdrawal of approximately 14% of the current force, and after the withdrawal is implemented, more than 30,000 troops will remain, a level close to what it was before the 2022 reinforcements.
Germany hosts the most important U.S. military infrastructure outside the United States, most notably Ramstein Air Base, the largest U.S. overseas air base and Air Force Command Center in Europe and Africa, and the Stuttgart garrison houses major strategic headquarters such as European Command (EUCOM) and African Command (AFRICOCOM), in addition to Landstuhl Medical Center, the largest U.S. military hospital outside the country, and the Hohenfels Training Center, which is used for large-scale combat exercises.
The strategic importance of this presence lies in its pivotal role within NATO's collective defense system, as Germany is a key departure point for operations and supplies to the Middle East, Africa, and Eastern Europe, as well as continuing to host elements of joint nuclear deterrence. The U.S. military presence also provides economic leverage for a number of German cities that rely on jobs and base-related spending.