A look at the US military presence in Europe as Trump seeks to withdraw troops from Germany
US President Donald Trump's abrupt decision to withdraw thousands of troops from Germany has refocused attention on the US military presence in Europe, which not only acts as a deterrent to Russia but also allows Washington to project US power across the globe. Here's a look at the current American military deployment in Europe and the possible implications of Trump's move.
Issued on: 04/05/2026
By: FRANCE 24
US President Donald Trump’s vow to shrink America's military deployment in Germany has put a new spotlight on the US role in Europe.
There are usually 80,000 to 100,000 troops on the continent, with more than 36,000 in Germany. The Pentagon announced Friday that it would remove 5,000 troops from Germany, and Trump said the next day that he would go “a lot further” than that.
The US military presence is a legacy of World War II, when Americans helped stabilize and rebuild Europe, and the Cold War, when the troops served as a bulwark against Soviet expansion. More recently, the deployment has played a key role supporting operations in the Arctic, Africa and the Middle East including the current conflict with Iran.
But Trump has broken with years of bipartisan consensus, criticizing European allies in NATO and following through on threats to reduce the US commitment to the continent's security. The recent announcement comes after escalating tensions with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who last week said the US was being “humiliated” by Iran and accusing Washington of lacking a clear strategy.
Here's a look at America's current deployment in Europe and how it could change.
The US European Command, created in 1947 and known as EUCOM, is one of 11 combat commands within the Defense Department, and covers some 50 countries and territories.
In addition to more than 36,000 troops in Germany, Italy hosts more than 12,000 and there's another 10,000 in the United Kingdom, according to Pentagon numbers from December.
The Pentagon has offered few details about which troops or operations would be affected in the drawdown announced Friday.
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The US increased its European deployment after Russia launched its full-scale war on Ukraine four years ago. NATO allies like Germany have expected for over a year that these troops would be the first to leave.
Aside from its role as a deterrent to Russia, the US military presence in Europe helps Washington project power across the globe.
US Gen. Alexus Grynkewich, who is the commander in Europe of both US and NATO forces, reinforced the benefits of a strong footprint on the continent to the Senate Armed Services Committee in March.
“It is having capabilities in Europe, munitions in Europe that allow us to help US Africa Command to target terrorists in Africa, or to help US Central Command as they execute Operation Epic Fury,” he told lawmakers, referring to the Iran war. “The distances are shorter, it’s less expensive and it’s much easier to project power.”
Germany hosts the headquarters of the US European and Africa commands, Ramstein Air Base and a medical center in Landstuhl, where casualties from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were treated. US nuclear weapons are also stationed in the country.
The US has approximately 100 nuclear bombs deployed to bases in Europe that would be delivered by aircraft, according to a March estimate from the Federation of American Scientists. The group's report said the bombs are at bases in Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey, while it’s possible they’re also at a base in the United Kingdom.
Even before Trump's comment Saturday to reporters, Republican leaders of both armed services committees in Congress expressed concern about the Pentagon plan, warning a premature drawdown in Europe would send “the wrong signal to Vladimir Putin” as the Russian president continues his war in Ukraine.
Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama said troops should be shifted to bases in Eastern Europe rather than withdrawn.
The lawmakers also said allies have made “substantial investments to host US troops.”
Wicker and Rogers said the Pentagon, following its announcement Friday, has also decided to cancel the planned deployment to Germany of one of the US Army’s long-range fires battalions, which operate ground-launched missile systems.
As part of its National Defense Strategy announced in January – a sweeping document laying out a vision on everything from deterring China to defending against cyberattacks to disrupting Iran's nuclear ambitions – the administration said Europe must do more for its own defense.
While "we are and will remain engaged in Europe, we must – and will – prioritize defending the US Homeland and deterring China,” it said.
Among other things, the document noted that Europe's economic power, while shrinking in relative terms globally, remains significant, and said that Germany's economy alone “dwarfs that of Russia."
US troop withdrawal from Germany would be 'foolish', expert says
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“Fortunately, our NATO allies are substantially more powerful than Russia – it is not even close,” it said, noting a recent commitment among NATO allies to raise national defense spending to 5% of GDP in total, a push led by Trump.
Germany has moved to modernize its long-neglected military, or Bundeswehr, since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. That year, it set up a 100 billion euro ($117 billion) special fund to boost Bundeswehr, much of which has been committed to procuring new equipment.
Late last year, Merz's government announced plans to raise the number of military personnel to 260,000, up from about 180,000. In 2001, when Germany still had conscription, the headcount was 300,000 – more than a third of them conscripts.
Berlin says it will also need around 200,000 reservists, more than double the current figure.
Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, in comments to German news agency dpa after the Pentagon's drawdown plan was announced Friday, acknowledged that Europe must take more responsibility for its own security – and said the Bundeswehr is growing, military equipment is being procured more quickly, and infrastructure is being developed.
(FRANCE 24 with AP)
'No strategy' behind Trump's withdrawal of NATO troops from Germany, sources say
Trump did not warn allies prior to his abrupt announcement of the withdrawal of 5,000 active-duty troops from Germany. The sudden move came amid an ongoing feud with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, sparked by his criticism of the US' war in Iran, and Washington's strategy.
Senior NATO officials were not warned about US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany within the next 6-12 months prior to the Pentagon's announcement on Friday.
Questions about logistics such as from where and how the troops will be withdrawn have risen. It's also unclear how the decision will impact the defence alliance's overall force posture, several sources with knowledge of the situation have told Euronews.
Trump on Saturday added that troop presence in Germany will be reduced "a lot further" than the initally announced 5,000, but the Republican president did not detail how much further or when those reductions are to be expected.
According to sources, the announcement which took senior NATO command by surprise is short on detail. Washington has not detailed whether the troops who'll be departing Germany are from a rotation that won't be replenished, an air squadron or if the troops are part of the core unit.
"We don't know what are these forces is it the core of a brigade? an air squadron?" former US ambassador to NATO, Ivo Daalder told Euronews.
"There is no detail because Trump just made this number up,” another US source told Euronews.
Military planners are minimising the bearing at least 5,000 fewer US military personnel will have on Europe's security posture, given the changing nature of warfare which relies less on soldiers and more on technology and advanced weaponry.
Moreover, several European allies, especially Germany, have substantially bolstered their own defences over the last year. NATO countries have been bracing for a potential US troop presence review, which they knew could happen at any moment.
Nonetheless, they had expected to be consulted ahead of any such decision directly impacting European security and NATO territory.
The view from NATO capitals is that an orderly, collaborative disengagement of US forces would take place, where allies fully abreast of the situation would avoid serious disruption to NATO's deterrence capabilities.
NATO officials are drawing conclusions about the timing of the announcement after Trump took umbrage at comments made by German Chancellor Frederic Merz who said days earlier that Iran was “humiliating” the United States, and that Washington had went into war with an ill-conceived strategy.
“The figure of 5,000 is a top-line number that Trump took out of the sky because he wanted to do something demonstrative as part of his confrontation with Merz,” a US source told Euronews.
Trump posted an initial statement on Wednesday night after Merz's remarks saying the Pentagon was “studying” how to reduce US presence in Germany, and later adding that “the Chancellor of Germany should spend more time on ending the war with Russia/Ukraine ... and fixing his broken Country.”
Hours later, Chief Pentagon Spokesperson Sean Parnell told Fox News that the Secretary of War has “ordered the withdrawal of approximately 5,000 troops from Germany.”
The White House has also been furious at European allies for rejecting Trump's calls to join in the war in Iran. Trump has taken aim and some of them, as well as the NATO alliance itself, describing it as a “paper tiger.”
“Let’s just say it was a very short space of time between Trump’s first post saying he was “studying” how to draw down troops after the feud with Merz, and then the sudden announcement,” another NATO source told Euronews.
Meanwhile, Allison Hart, a spokesperson for NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, issued a statement saying “we are working with the US to understand the details. This adjustment underscores the need for Europe to invest more in defence and take on a greater share of the responsibility for our shared security.”
US troops have been heavily embedded in Germany ever since the Cold War, and today have a deployment exceeding 36,000 active-duty personnel. Their presence is regarded as more than a legacy of the Cold War, but an important projection of US power globally.
This is a matter which Daalder says the Trump administration missed. The former ambassador says Trump is missing the bigger picture in his pursuit to penalise European allies for not joining in the war in Iran.
"He thinks he can punish allies by removing troops, but he is hurting America’s interests," Daaldo said.
"He is just demonstrating that he doesn’t understand how America’s interests are served."
“He believes we have troops in Europe for the sole purpose of doing others a favour," he added, speaking to Euronews on the phone from the US. “The bottom line is that Europe is no longer first, second, third or even fourth down the list of priorities for the US."
