USA

House Democrat says Germany troop withdrawal ‘no way to run a foreign policy’

Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) on Sunday criticized the Trump administration’s decision to withdraw 5,000 troops from Germany following a public spat with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.

Last week, the German Chancellor said that Washington was “humiliated” by Iran due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, in statements condemned by President Trump.

“This decision appears to have been made because Donald Trump was disturbed by a comment made by the German Chancellor, got emotional and angry about it, and made a really important unity decision — unity action decisions based on being disturbed by the comments of a foreign leader, which is not the way to conduct a foreign policy,” Crow said during an appearance on CBS News’ “Face the Nation.”

“So we are looking into the matter, and if it does occur, we will make sure that any action is actually in our best interests,” the House Democrat added.

Crow referred to a law passed by both the House of Representatives and the Senate that establishes certain conditions for the movement of U.S. troops across Europe.

Last year, Trump signed the Fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, which mandates the presence of at least 76,000 U.S. troops in Europe.

This law restricts the Pentagon from reducing troop numbers below that threshold for more than 45 days without providing a formal assessment and certifying to Congress that the reduction would not harm U.S. or NATO security interests.

“We enacted these laws out of serious concern about this administration’s rhetoric in the past that they would reduce our presence in Europe, one of the most significant military footprints we have in the world, which helps keep Europe safe, helps secure our economy, helps protect the hundreds of thousands of American citizens who live and work on the continent. So we are enforcing the law and the requirements,” Crow said.

During his first term, Trump sought to reduce the number of troops in Germany by 12,000; but former President Biden blocked the measure after ascending to the Oval Office.

“It should be alarming to every American to have a President of the United States who is a commander in chief who will mobilize thousands of troops just to take revenge on a foreign leader for a comment he doesn’t like. But I’m not opposed to troop movements, like if we have to move troops or brigades to respond to national security issues, we should absolutely do that,” Crow said.

“That’s the commander in chief’s prerogative. When I was in the military, we moved our forces around all the time. I mean, we actually have to make sure that it’s done based on the risks that our forces face, that it’s done on the right timeline, because moving troops and units is very risky and exposes them to a variety of risks, and that’s in the best interest of the United States.”

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