US EditionGerman chancellor downplays row with Trump after troop drawdown announced
NATO is seeking details as the Pentagon plans to cut about 5,000 troops, a move that also ends a Biden-era missile deployment plan.
- On Friday, Washington announced a 5,000-soldier reduction in Germany, canceling a Biden-era plan to deploy long-range Tomahawk missiles as a deterrent against Russia.
- German Chancellor Friedrich Merz questioned U.S. war planning in the Middle East, saying the U.S. was being "embarrassed" in Iran talks, prompting President Donald Trump to call him an "ineffectual" leader.
- Merz dismissed suggestions that his criticism sparked the drawdown, stating "There is no connection," and added the Americans likely lacked sufficient missiles themselves to deploy.
- In an interview aired Sunday on ARD, Merz stated he must accept the American president's differing views to work within NATO while remaining convinced the Americans are important partners.
- President Trump has pushed for reduced U.S. presence in Germany since his first term, consistently calling on Europeans to assume greater responsibility for their own security.
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A year into Merz government, German far right stronger than ever
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz took office a year ago vowing to revive the political centre, but the far-right AfD party has risen to the top of the polls while his own coalition's popularity is falling.
German Chancellor Merz insists that Trump’s planned withdrawal of five thousand American troops has nothing to do with his criticism of the American approach to Iran. The Chancellor also states that America and Germany remain partners. "Merz is very smart," says defense specialist Peter Wijninga of the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies.
German Chancellor Merz Downplays Rift With Trump Over US Troop Drawdown
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has played down talk of a rift with U.S. President Donald Trump after the White House announced a big drawdown of troops stationed in Germany. Last week, Merz—a conservative who became chancellor last year—said the United States appeared to have no strategy for the Middle East conflict and said it was “being humiliated” by the Iranian leadership. In response, in a post on Truth Social on April 30, Trump wrote, “T…
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