US withdrawing 5,000 troops from Germany after chancellor criticized war with Iran
By Natasha Bertrand, Kit Maher, CNN
(CNN) — The Pentagon said on Friday the US will be withdrawing roughly 5,000 troops from Germany over the next year.
The move, which comes after President Donald Trump lashed out the German chancellor over his criticism of the US war with Iran, would still leave more than 30,000 US troops in the country.
“The Secretary of War has ordered the withdrawal of approximately 5,000 troops from Germany,” chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a 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.”
Trump foreshadowed the cuts earlier this week after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the US was being “humiliated” by Iran.
During his visit to a school in central Germany on Monday, Merz accused US officials of entering a war without a clear strategy, saying the “whole affair is ill-considered to say the least.”
“The Iranians are obviously very skilled at negotiating, or rather, very skillful at not negotiating, letting the Americans travel to Islamabad and then leave again without any result,” Merz said. “An entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership, especially by these so-called Revolutionary Guards. And so I hope that this ends as quickly as possible.”
Trump on Tuesday said Merz “doesn’t know what he’s talking about” on Iran and the following day announced that the US was “studying and reviewing” a possible troop reduction.
Ahead of Trump’s threat to pull some troops from Germany, Merz had said his relationship with the American president remained “good.”
Trump previously threatened to reduce troop numbers in the country in 2020, during his first tenure in office and while Angela Merkel held the German chancellorship.
Germany is home to Ramstein Air Base, which is the headquarters for US Air Forces in Europe — including the unit that does “airlift, airdrop and aeromedical evacuation operations” — and a North Atlantic Treaty Organization installation, according to its website.
As of December 2025, there were 36,436 active-duty US military personnel permanently stationed in Germany, according to data from the US Defense Manpower Data Center.
Friction between European leaders and the Trump administration has intensified due to the war with Iran, which the US launched without notifying most NATO allies. The president has also lashed out at allies for what he sees as insufficient help in the conflict, threatening to cut troop levels in Italy and Spain on Thursday as well.
“I mean, they haven’t been exactly on board,” he answered, when asked about the possibility. “Yeah, probably will,” he added, “Why shouldn’t I? Italy has not been of any help. Spain has been horrible. Absolutely.”
Germany, like some other European countries, has offered limited military support to the US, most notably allowing the use of its military infrastructure, such as air bases, for operations related to the conflict — though it has not permitted these to be used as staging grounds for direct offensive strikes.
Merz has also pledged further German assistance under the condition the conflict moves to a post-war phase, which could include participating in a potential international stabilization mission.
To that effect, Berlin recently announced a naval minesweeper will be deployed to the Mediterranean Sea in preparation for efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, once a lasting end to hostilities is reached. These actions, however, have failed to satisfy Trump.
CNN’s Sophie Tanno, Sebastian Shukla and Aleena Fayaz contributed to this report.
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