Dorothy

“We’re going to cut way down. And we’re cutting a lot further than 5,000,” Trump told reporters in Florida.

Pistorius, in his comments to dpa, said, "We Europeans must take on more responsibility for our security," while stressing recent efforts by Germany to boost its armed forces, accelerate procurement and develop infrastructure.

In another sign of friction, Trump accused the European Union of failing to comply with its U.S. trade deal and announced plans to increase tariffs on cars and trucks produced in the bloc to 25% next week, a move that would be particularly damaging to Germany, a major automobile manufacturer.

A U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, said the branches of the U.S. military didn’t have prior knowledge of the decision to draw down the 5,000 troops and learned about it “in real time.”

“The decision to withdraw troops in Germany follows a comprehensive, multilayered process that incorporates perspectives from key leaders in EUCOM and across the chain of command,” acting Pentagon press secretary Joel Valdez wrote in an email, using the abbreviation for U.S. European Command.

GOP lawmakers voice concern about withdrawal plan After swift pushback from Democrats on Friday, Republican leaders of both armed services committees in Congress said Saturday they were “very concerned” about the troop withdrawal.

They also noted that Germany has heeded Trump’s call to shoulder more of the burden of defense spending in Europe, while giving U.S. forces access to its bases and airspace in the war against Iran.

But that hasn't quieted Trump, who again hit back again in a fresh Thursday morning Truth Social post, which emphasized that the German Chancellor should focus more on problems like the Russia-Ukraine war, where "he has been totally ineffective" - Trump said.