The Pentagon spokesman, Jonathan Hoffman, announced President Donald Trump's approval of a proposal to withdraw 9 thousand and 500 American soldiers currently stationed in Germany, provided that this plan "the coming weeks" be presented to Congress, and then to NATO allies ( NATO).

Hoffman said in a statement that Minister Mark Esber and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Army, General Mark Millie, "presented on Monday this plan to redeploy 9 thousand and 500 soldiers outside Germany."

He was referring to the June 15 reduction requested by President Trump, who accused Berlin of financially benefiting from the US military presence, and of failing to meet its financial and defense obligations.

"The approved proposal not only responds to the president's directives, it will also increase deterrence vis-a-vis Russia, strengthen NATO, reassure allies, and improve the strategic flexibility of the United States and the operational leadership of the US military in Europe," the spokesman said.

American soldiers during military training in Germany (Getty Images)

Inform and consult

Hoffman added that Pentagon officials would inform the "Congressional Defense Committees of both chambers of the coming weeks, and then they will consult with allies."

The spokesman did not specify in which countries these American forces could be deployed, but Trump said during his meeting with his Polish counterpart Andre Doda last week at the White House that "Poland will be one of those other places in Europe."

According to two senior Pentagon officials, some of the soldiers will be returned to the United States, and the rest will be sent to countries in the former Soviet bloc, with the aim of sending a clear message to Russia, whose military ambitions became clear when it annexed Crimea in 2014.