BERLIN, May 2 - German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said on Saturday that the announcement by the Pentagon of a plan to withdraw 5,000 U.S. military personnel from Germany underlines the need for Europeans to assume greater responsibility for their own defence.
Pistorius said, "Germany is on the right track," citing measures aimed at enlarging the Bundeswehr armed forces, accelerating and increasing procurement of equipment, and building the necessary infrastructure to support a stronger national and regional defence posture.
The Pentagon's announcement on Friday confirmed that the United States intends to move ahead with a reduction of 5,000 troops stationed in Germany. Pistorius estimated the current number of U.S. personnel in the country at "almost 40,000." He stressed that while the United States has played a key role in European security, the movement of forces away from the continent was something that could be anticipated.
"The presence of American soldiers in Europe, and especially in Germany, is in our interest and in the interest of the United States," Pistorius said. He added that it was "foreseeable that the U.S. would withdraw troops from Europe, including Germany."
European NATO members, prompted in part by sustained criticism from Washington about defence spending levels, have publicly pledged to take on a larger share of responsibility for protecting the region. Pistorius pointed to Germany's own actions as evidence of commitment to that goal.
Yet Pistorius also acknowledged a significant caveat: constrained budgets and substantial capability shortfalls across the region mean that meeting Europe’s security needs will not be immediate. The minister said it will take years for European nations to close those gaps, given the scale of procurement and infrastructure work needed.
The announcement therefore serves as both a political signal and an operational challenge. It underscores the gap between stated ambitions among NATO partners to increase defence burdensharing and the practical realities that budgetary limits and capability deficiencies impose on that process.
Summary
The planned withdrawal of 5,000 U.S. troops from Germany has prompted German officials to emphasise greater European responsibility for defence. Germany points to measures to expand its armed forces and improve procurement and infrastructure, while warning that tight budgets and capability deficits mean it will take years for Europe to meet its security needs independently.