Washington, D.C. — Today, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper announced a significant withdrawal and repositioning of U.S. military presence in Europe. The number of troops permanently based in Germany will be reduced from approximately 36,000 to 24,000. In response, Kelly Magsamen, vice president for National Security and International Policy at the Center for American Progress and a former senior Pentagon official, issued the following statement:
President Donald Trump is once again selling out our allies to the benefit of Vladimir Putin. Any changes in U.S. military presence abroad should be done in service of an actual strategy to advance U.S. interests and in close coordination with our allies. This decision clearly does neither. It’s about Trump punishing an important ally that he just doesn’t like. Trump himself has admitted as much. Unfortunately, this decision and how badly it has been handled could have negative consequences for U.S. and European security interests for years to come.
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