The Pentagon announced its intention to transfer the European headquarters of the American forces from Germany to Belgium, and the headquarters of the F-16 aircraft will be moved to Italy, in compliance with the orders of President Donald Trump, who criticized Germany's defense contribution to the North Alliance. Atlantic (NATO).
About 12,000 American soldiers out of 36,000 will be withdrawn from Germany, in a move aimed at reorganizing the deployment of US forces in Europe, US Defense Secretary Mark Esber said.
Under the new plan, Esber said that 6,400 of the soldiers would return to the United States, while 5,400 would be distributed to other US bases in Europe.
Esper added that the decision was dictated by strategic circumstances, and would allow the strengthening of the defense capabilities of NATO forces on the Black Sea and the Baltic countries, which could raise Moscow's frustration over the tension over Moscow’s annexation of Crimea.
Trump had announced plans to cut his forces, and criticized Germany for not meeting the target levels of defense spending set by NATO.
Some of the troop withdrawals will begin within months, and it is likely that it will send air and ground forces to countries that already have American forces, with about 25,000 remaining in Germany, the Associated Press reported.
The agency said that the announcement is closely linked to the plan to increase the presence of US forces in Poland, a long-awaited transformation by Polish President Andrzej Doda.
According to defense officials, these steps will cost billions and require construction in US bases to accommodate the additional forces.