ISTANBUL - President Donald Trump said Saturday that the United States plans to reduce its troop presence by "a lot further than 5,000 troops” following a decision to scale back forces in Germany, Anadolu Ajansi reported.
"We're going to cut way down and we're cutting a lot further than 5,000," Trump told reporters in the US state of Florida when asked about the move to withdraw troops from Europe.
The Pentagon announced the reduction in Germany, the largest US military hub in Europe, on Friday, as disagreements about the Iran war and tariffs deepened tensions between Washington and its European allies.
The US defence chief has ordered the withdrawal of approximately 5,000 troops from Germany, a Pentagon spokesman said Friday.
The move follows remarks by Trump indicating that Washington was reviewing its military footprint in Germany. His comments came after German Chancellor Friedrich Merz criticised the US for lacking a clear exit strategy in the Iran war, arguing that Americans were being "humiliated” by Iranian leadership during negotiations.
Meanwhile, the chairs of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees voiced concern about the decision.
"We are very concerned by the decision to withdraw a US brigade from Germany,” Senator Roger Wicker and Representative Mike Rogers said in a statement Saturday. - BERNAMA-ANADOLU