WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump has approved a plan to slash the US military presence in Germany by 9,500 troops, the Defense Department said Tuesday.
Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman said the move, which has sparked concerns in Berlin and in the NATO alliance, is to redeploy the troops and will "enhance Russian deterrence, strengthen NATO, (and) reassure allies," as well as improving US strategic flexibility.
The move will cut the current troop level in Germany from about 34,500 to 25,000, Trump's stated goal.
Hoffmann gave no details on when the reductions would happen or whether the troops would be redeployed to another NATO country.
He said the Pentagon will brief Congress on the plan "in the coming weeks" and then consult allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization "on the way forward."
Pentagon officials say that if the reduction takes place, some of the troops could be sent to former Eastern Bloc countries - some on a permanent basis but most in short-term rotations - to send a message to Moscow.
Worries about possible Russian expansionism surged in NATO countries after Moscow sent troops in 2014 to seize the Crimea region from Ukraine.
While Polish leader Andrzej Duda visited Washington last week, Trump said some of the US troops could go to Poland. "Some will be coming home and some will be going to other places. Poland would be one of those other places," he said.
Trump said earlier this month he was cutting troops due to unhappiness with Germany.
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