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German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said Monday that Berlin wants to “enter into close dialogue” with the United States after Washington announced plans to withdraw American troops stationed in Germany.
Wadephul made the remarks at a news conference with Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis, after U.S. President Donald Trump warned Saturday that he intended to sharply reduce the number of American soldiers in Germany.
“We need to enter into close dialogue with the United States to clarify what decision has actually been taken and what possibilities we have to exert influence,” Wadephul said.
The Pentagon has already announced a reduction of 5,000 troops from U.S. military bases in Germany.
Trump’s warning came on top of that announced drawdown, raising further questions in Berlin over the future American military presence in the country.
Wadephul said the U.S. plans should be seen as another signal for Germany to move faster in developing its own military capabilities.
“We must see this as a new call to develop our own capabilities more quickly and to make them available,” he said.
“There is no other way... the overall context shows me that we must not overestimate isolated measures,” Wadephul added.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz also appeared Sunday to confirm that the planned deployment of Tomahawk intermediate-range cruise missiles in Germany was no longer on the table, at least for now.
Wadephul and other German officials have sought in recent days to defuse tensions between Trump and Merz.
Merz had said that “the Americans obviously had no strategy” in Iran and that Tehran was “humiliating” the world’s leading power.
Trump also indirectly targeted Germany and its major automobile exports by saying he wanted to raise tariffs on vehicles imported from the European Union into the United States to 25% “next week.”
The U.S. president accused the EU of failing to respect the trade agreement concluded last summer, although the ratification process has not yet been completed within the 27-member bloc.
Wadephul did not directly comment on Trump’s latest remarks.
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