NATO says ‘working’ with US to ‘understand’ decision to cut troops in Germany
NATO on Saturday said it was “working” with the United States to understand Washington’s decision to slash its troops in Germany by 5,000 following a spat between the leaders of the two nations.
The US move came after President Donald Trump renewed criticism of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said Monday that Iran was “humiliating” Washington in negotiations to end the war in the Middle East.
“We are working with the US to understand the details of their decision on force posture in Germany,” NATO spokeswoman Allison Hart said on X.
“This adjustment underscores the need for Europe to continue to invest more in defense and take on a greater share of the responsibility for our shared security – where we’re already seeing progress since Allies agreed to invest 5% of GDP,” the post said.
“We remain confident in our ability to provide for our deterrence and defense as this shift towards a stronger Europe in a stronger NATO continues.”
It is noteworthy that the United States had approximately 68,000 active-duty military personnel assigned permanently in its overseas bases in Europe as of December 2025, data from the U.S. Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) shows. These do not include rotational forces sent on deployment and exercise missions.
The U.S. troops are stationed in more than a dozen European countries. Germany, Italy and Britain have the biggest presence of personnel. This list comprises some of the largest contingents.
