Trump to Reduce US Troops in Germany, Pentagon Shocked

"Trump's latest threat to the transatlantic alliance comes just days after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the U.S. was being "humiliated" by Iran at the negotiating table.

Trump's initial post came hours after he spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has long sought to reduce the number of NATO troops in Europe.

And it occurred as Germany's Chief of Defence, Gen. Carsten Breuer, wrapped up a day of meetings with U.S. officials in Washington to discuss Berlin's new defense strategy."

"Taking out American forces could remove a major military deterrent against a rearming Russia, which European officials believe is preparing to attack NATO soil in the coming years. And Trump's threats have made European officials, who are already making plans to try to reopen the Strait of Hormuz without Trump, even more sick of America playing hostage diplomacy with allies.

"Trump's policy of crude threats has reached its limits," said a German official.

"His rhetoric has worn thin. Withdrawing U.S. troops from Germany would severely weaken the U.S. itself, and we wonder when the adults in D.C. plan to step back into the spotlight."

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Vlad's Poodle Agent Krasnov Strikes Again!

#1 | Posted by Corky at 2026-04-30 08:33 PM | Reply

... scrambled to figure out if the president was serious about following through on his threats this time. ...

When those in the Pentagon apparently have to scramble to figure out if the President of the United States, their Commander in Chief, is "serious this time."

Wow.

...

#2 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-04-30 08:34 PM | Reply

Wow.

Really. By now they should know he's not serious. He's never serious about anything, beyond slapping his name on stuff.

#3 | Posted by REDIAL at 2026-04-30 09:39 PM | Reply

His 90 minute conversation with his Lord and master, Vlad Putin, preceded his latest perfidious blathering: https://substack.com/@adamkinzinger/note/c-251302411?r=29x0w8&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action

#4 | Posted by Augustine at 2026-05-01 06:52 AM | Reply

From Adam Kinzinger's Substack;
Trump, after having a 90 min phone call with Putin, puts out a truth social that he is considering withdrawing troops from Germany. Something sinister is going on between this US administration and Russia's.

https://substack.com/@adamkinzinger/note/c-251302411?r=r57tm&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action

If USA pulls out of Germany, AFD gets stronger and so does every kleptofascist movement around the world.

#5 | Posted by Augustine at 2026-05-01 06:57 AM | Reply

Something sinister is going on between this US administration and Russia

You think?

#6 | Posted by ClownShack at 2026-05-01 07:03 AM | Reply

Will America's Dictators-Wanna-Be(s) use the GOP & SCOTUS to scuttle America's democracy?

It's a looming threat that all the world's democracies are increasingly concerned about. Are there enough American voters sufficiently concerned to prevent this threat from becoming tomorrow's nightmarish reality?

#7 | Posted by Augustine at 2026-05-01 07:39 AM | Reply | Newsworthy 1

If Louisiana Republicans can stop an election after ballots were cast, democracy is already dead in America.

Russia destroyed America so successfully and smoothly, most Americans haven't figured it out yet.

It's over.

Republicans have killed democracy.

#8 | Posted by ClownShack at 2026-05-01 03:57 PM | Reply

US to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany in next 6-12 months, fulfilling Trump's threat
www.newsnationnow.com

... The United States will withdraw about 5,000 troops from Germany in the next six to 12 months, the Pentagon said Friday, fulfilling President Donald Trump's threat as he clashes with the German leader over the U.S. war with Iran.

Trump had threatened to withdraw some troops from the NATO ally earlier this week after Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the U.S. was being "humiliated" by the Iranian leadership and criticized Washington's lack of strategy in the war.

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement that the "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."

Germany hosts several U.S. military facilities, including the headquarters of its European and Africa commands, Ramstein Air Base and a medical center in Landstuhl, where casualties from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were treated. U.S. nuclear missiles are also stationed in the country.

The number of troops leaving Germany would be 14% of the 36,000 American service members stationed there.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius called it "foreseeable" that the U.S. would withdraw troops from Europe and Germany, while he sought to stress mutual benefit from the U.S. military presence on the European continent.

"The presence of American soldiers in Europe, and especially in Germany, is in our interest and in the interest of the U.S.," Pistorius told the German news agency dpa, while adding that European allies needed to adjust their defense postures -- and were doing so. ...

#9 | Posted by LampLighter at 2026-05-02 01:51 PM | Reply

Just the next payment that Trump owed Putin from their backroom deal. After all, he's already halted aid to Ukraine. There's not much left except the total dissolution of NATO, which I suspect will happen as we get closer to the end of Trump's term of office.

OCU

#10 | Posted by OCUser at 2026-05-02 06:31 PM | Reply | Newsworthy 1

__________
2paragraphs.com - Ex-GOP Congressman Says "Something Sinister" Is Going On Between Trump and Putin

|------- Adam Kinzinger said: "Trump, after having a 90 min phone call with Putin, puts out a truth social that he is considering withdrawing all troops from Germany. Something sinister is going on between them. It's time for 'concerned' Republicans to speak out."
-------|

According to AP: "... U.S. defense official... said the branches of the U.S. military didn't have prior knowledge of the decision [announced on Truth Social] to draw down the 5,000 troops and learned about it 'in real time.' " ...

More of recent Trum/Putin and their attempts to rehab Putin with the US and/or the West (Reverse Kissinger):

1. Trump's State Dept is preparing to officially invite Putin to G20 summit in Miami (though Trump coyly said he wants "to invite Putin but doubts he will come" while Putin's FM coyly said "G20 is very important").

2. There were plans for Putin's proposal inviting Trump to Russia's WWII Victory Day parade on May 9 as a sign and possible announcement of thawing relations between US and Russia, as well as a one-day unilateral "ceasefire" with Ukraine, but due to military shortages and fears of UA drone attacks, both Moscow's annual military parade and the guest list (that had 29 heads of state last year including China's Xi and Brazil's Lula, but conspicuously absent India's Modi), were "downsized" and it became obvious that inviting Trump would not a good look at this time, so it was scrapped during their 90-minute conversation.

Victory Day is on of the most important holidays in Russia, and Putin tied the war in Ukraine to the Soviet Union's (not Allies) victory over Nazi Germany, as part of a broader historical struggle against "Nazism."

As Europe and Asia (Japan, Korea etc.) are taking more active financial and military role in Ukraine's defense, along with advanced homegrown industry (UA's Sting interceptor drones took down over 32,000 Russian drones in March alone), they look visibly less and less to the US (Trump) for solutions... and that's not good long term for the US:
kyivindependent.com - How Zelensky ran out of patience with Trump " and what it means for US-Ukraine relations - 2026-04-30

|------- In just two months, President Volodymyr Zelensky shifted from being the first world leader to back a U.S. military operation in the Middle East to openly criticizing Washington's foreign policy. ...

... In Ukrainian, there is a phrase often translated as "nerves of steel," and many in Kyiv use it when describing Zelensky's approach to dealing with U.S. President Donald Trump.

For months, that approach meant restraint. ... But recent months have shown a noticeable shift. ...

"It's disrespectful to come to Moscow and not Kyiv, it's just disrespectful," he said on April 20.

Zelensky also criticized U.S. Vice President JD Vance for praising the halt of American military aid to Ukraine, saying the stance benefits Russia and weakens the United States. ...
-------|

TrumPutin is actively pursuing "Russia First" and "America Alone" policies. No one cares [to guess] what he thinks anymore, because he himself doesn't know and just keyfabes it day-to-day, so as much as possible they cut him (and the US) out of the loop on foreign and trade relationships.

He doesn't have "all the cards" but he has quite enough of them to seriously damage the US for a long time.
__________

#11 | Posted by CutiePie at 2026-05-03 08:48 AM | Reply