All posts tagged: Withdrawing

The Real Cost of Withdrawing U.S. Troops From Germany

The Real Cost of Withdrawing U.S. Troops From Germany

Published by Daniella Wilson

While the high-security corridors of Washington and Berlin are occupied with a frantic, transactional debate over NATO burden sharing and the fallout of the Iran blockade, a far more profound rupture is occurring in the quiet streets of the Rhineland-Palatinate. President Trump announced last week that the United States will remove 5,000 troops from Germany, possibly as the beginning of a larger drawdown. Pentagon planners anticipate a phased reduction over the next 12 months that could see the total U.S. presence in Germany drop significantly. Some analysts believe that the administration ultimately favors rotating troops in and out of Europe rather than permanently basing them there. Americans have been stationed in Germany by the tens of thousands since the end of World War II. Some 50,000 Americans—including military personnel, civilian employees, and their families—populate the Kaiserslautern Military Community, which includes Ramstein Air Base. The remainder of the U.S. presence is concentrated in strategic hubs such as Wiesbaden, the headquarters of the U.S. Army Europe and Africa, and the training grounds of Grafenwoehr and Vilseck in …

US Withdrawing 5,000 Troops From Germany, US Officials Say

US Withdrawing 5,000 Troops From Germany, US Officials Say

Published by Sam Flores

By Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali WASHINGTON, May 1 (Reuters) – The United States is withdrawing 5,000 troops from ⁠NATO ally ⁠Germany, the Pentagon announced on Friday, as a rift ⁠over the Iran war widens between President Donald Trump and Europe. Trump had threatened a drawdown in forces earlier this week after sparring ​with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said on Monday the Iranians were humiliating the U.S. in talks to end the two-month-old war and that he did not see what exit strategy Washington was pursuing. A senior ‌Pentagon official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said recent German ‌rhetoric had been “inappropriate and unhelpful.” “The president is rightly reacting to these counterproductive remarks,” the official said. The Pentagon said the withdrawal was expected to be completed over the next six to 12 months. Germany ⁠is home to some ⁠35,000 active-duty U.S. military personnel, more than anywhere else in Europe. The official said the drawdown would bring U.S. troop ​levels in Europe back to roughly pre-2022 levels, before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered a buildup …

US Withdrawing All Forces From Syria, Over A Year After Regime Change By Proxy War

US Withdrawing All Forces From Syria, Over A Year After Regime Change By Proxy War

Published by Jenni Sidey

Last week we and others reported that American forces finally after many years withdrew from the remote Al-Tanf Garrison, a base in southern Syria near the borders of Iraq and Jordan. US troops had long operated out of Tanf to pressure the Assad government as part of the long-running US-backed regime change project. The US primarily trained the Syrian Free Army (FSA) in that remote desert area – which was an umbrella group of various factions, among them jihadists, armed and funded by Washington. But the majority of US forces had long occupied the northeast of the country, where the oil and gas fields are concentrated, specifically Hasakah and Deir Ezzor provinces. But over several weeks, the Pentagon has been handing over its constellation of small bases to the Syrian government of Ahmed al-Sharaa (al-Qaeda and ISIS name: Abu Mohammad al-Jolani). At times throughout the Syrian proxy war, the US had anywhere from 800 to 2000 troops on the ground, but likely also more contractors and intelligence operatives. Under Trump, Washington has been weighing a complete withdrawal since the year’s start, …