Trump Confirmed Plans for a Partial Withdrawal of Troops from Germany

President says Berlin does not fulfill financial obligations to NATO President Donald Trump plans to withdraw about half of the US troops stationed in German, despite fears that this step will reduce American influence throughout Europe. Claiming that Berlin makes insufficient financial contributions to the NATO alliance, Trump said that the US military contingent in Germany will be reduced to 25 thousand people. The president estimates that there are currently some 52,000 US military personnel in Germany, but that number may include civilians from the Department of Defense. “Germany does not fulfill its obligations, does not fulfill them for many years,” Trump told reporters in the White House. “They owe NATO billions of dollars, and they must pay them.” NATO members pledged to spend at least 2 percent of GDP on defense. Germany has not yet met that target. Trump also told reporters that Germany is treating the US “very badly on trade”. He said that his administration is in talks with the EU and he is “not satisfied with the deal they want to make.” “We get hurt on trade and we get hurt on NATO,” he said.