The United States has said it expects to move its European military headquarters out of Stuttgart, Germany to Belgium, as it announced broader plans to shift 12,000 troops out of Germany on orders from President Donald Trump.
Some 6,400 active US troops in Germany will be sent home while nearly 5,600 others will be moved to other NATO countries, US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said at a news conference on Wednesday. About 24,000 troops will remain in Germany, a country considered one of the US’s closest allies and trading partners since World War II.
Esper said that while the decision was “accelerated” by Trump’s previous calls to withdraw troops, which began in June, the moves also promote larger strategic goals to deter Russia, reassure European allies and shift forces further east into the Black Sea and Baltic regions.
Some military personnel could also go to Poland and the Baltic states if Warsaw follows through on an agreement already sketched out by the two sides, Esper said.
Trump has repeatedly said that Germany does not spend enough on defence. The withdrawal is also in line with the president’s “America first” platform and campaign pledges to wind down US involvement overseas.
