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US to Begin Removing 12,000 Troops From Germany ‘Within Weeks’
The Pentagon says this is about Russia. Trump says it’s about Germany.
First off, I'll correct a Trump lie. There is no mandate/rule that NATO nations spend 2% of their GDP on defense. This figure was established at the NATO Wales Summit of 2014 only as a "guideline". This NATO 2% of GDP spending "guideline" will be revisited by the NATO nations in 2024. So then, no NATO nations are "delinquent" as Mr. Trump constantly states.
This Trump ordered move of US troops from Germany will cost the US many billions of dollars. 5,600 of the US troops removed from Germany (1.38% of GDP ) will be re-positioned in Italy (1.22% of GDP) and Belgium (0.93% of GDP). In other words, Trump is punishing Germany for not spending enough on defense by moving German-based US troops to Italy and Belgium, which spend less on defense than Germany.
NATO Defense Expenditures (2019)
Trumps spending excuse is BS. This move will, by omission or commission, improve the European strategic situation for Russia. Champagne will be flowing at the Kremlin.
The Pentagon says this is about Russia. Trump says it’s about Germany.
7/29/20
The U.S. will move 11,900 troops from Germany beginning within weeks, Defense Secretary Mark Esper announced on Wednesday, providing some of the first concrete details of a murky withdrawal plan sought by President Donald Trump. The cuts will bring the U.S. force in Germany down by one-third, from roughly 36,000 to 24,000 troops. But not all will be leaving Europe or staying in the United States for long. About 5,600 will be repositioned within NATO countries, including Belgium and Italy. And “many” of the 6,400 who will return to the United States will begin conducting rotational deployments back to Europe, including potentially into Poland and the vulnerable Baltic states, Pentagon leaders said. Speaking to reporters at the Pentagon, Esper struggled to reconcile the Defense Department’s claim that the cuts are a strategic move designed to better counter Russia and China with Trump’s repeated public insistence that he ordered the drawdown to penalize Germany for being “delinquent” in its defense spending. The process will likely cost “single-digit” billions of dollars, Esper said. Gen. John Hyten, the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called that figure “a rough estimate.”
Trump undercut Pentagon assertions that the move is aimed at Russia. "They take advantage of us on trade, and they take advantage of us on the military,” Trump said of Germany, speaking to White House reporters, also on Wednesday morning. “So we're reducing the force because they’re not paying their bills. It's very simple. They’re delinquent.” Trump has repeatedly made similar statements over the last month. "So we're protecting Germany and they're delinquent. That doesn't make sense,” the president told White House reporters on June 15. “So I said, we're going to bring down the count to 25,000 soldiers." Regular Trump critic Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, called the plan "a grave error" and "a gift to Russia." "It is a slap in the face at a friend and ally when we should instead be drawing closer in our mutual commitment to deter Russian and Chinese aggression," Romney said in a statement. "The move may temporarily play well in domestic politics, but its consequences will be lasting and harmful to American interests.“ “This is a very bad strategic move for the US. Pulling troops out of Germany hurts us much more than it hurts our allies,” said former commander of U.S. Army Europe, Gen. Mark Hertling, in a tweet.
First off, I'll correct a Trump lie. There is no mandate/rule that NATO nations spend 2% of their GDP on defense. This figure was established at the NATO Wales Summit of 2014 only as a "guideline". This NATO 2% of GDP spending "guideline" will be revisited by the NATO nations in 2024. So then, no NATO nations are "delinquent" as Mr. Trump constantly states.
This Trump ordered move of US troops from Germany will cost the US many billions of dollars. 5,600 of the US troops removed from Germany (1.38% of GDP ) will be re-positioned in Italy (1.22% of GDP) and Belgium (0.93% of GDP). In other words, Trump is punishing Germany for not spending enough on defense by moving German-based US troops to Italy and Belgium, which spend less on defense than Germany.
NATO Defense Expenditures (2019)
Trumps spending excuse is BS. This move will, by omission or commission, improve the European strategic situation for Russia. Champagne will be flowing at the Kremlin.