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Republican lawmakers: German troop cuts send wrong signal to Russia

2026-05-03 15:16:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Republican lawmakers: German troop cuts send wrong signal to Russia

Two senior Republican US lawmakers have criticized the Pentagon's decision to cut 5,000 US troops stationed in Germany, saying it risks undermining defenses and will send the wrong signal to Russia.

Roger Wicker and Mike Rogers, who chair the Senate and House armed services committees, respectively, said that rather than withdrawing, those troops should be moved further east. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said Friday that the move came after a thorough review.

On Saturday, President Donald Trump said there could be further cuts, without giving details. The US has more than 36,000 active troops in Germany.

Germany's defense minister said the Pentagon's decision was predictable. The NATO military alliance said it was seeking clarification from Washington.

In a joint statement, Wicker and Rogers said they were deeply concerned by the decision to withdraw a US brigade from Germany, as European allies move towards spending more of their GDP on defence.

"Prematurely reducing America's presence in Europe before these capabilities are fully realized risks undermining deterrence and sending the wrong signal to Vladimir Putin. Rather than withdrawing forces from the continent entirely, it is in America's interest to maintain a strong deterrent in Europe by moving these 5,000 American forces east ," the statement said.

Washington's move comes after Trump criticized German Chancellor Friedrich Merz for his statement that the US had been humiliated by Iranian negotiators in the ongoing war. The US military deployment in Germany is by far the largest in Europe, compared with about 12,000 in Italy and 10,000 in the United Kingdom. /CNA





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