Iran war divides politicians First allies - now Trump is openly threatening Merz
The relationship between Chancellor Merz and US President Trump was considered good for a long time. Now the two are taking a different tone - and one of them is making a threat.
30.04.2026, 05:10
30.04.2026, 07:54
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- US President Donald Trump apparently wants to punish German Chancellor Friedrich Merz for his critical comments on the Iran war.
- Washington is examining a troop reduction in Germany, says Trump.
- A decision is to be made shortly, he wrote on his Truth Social platform.
- The announcement follows Trump's clear criticism of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz for making critical comments about the US offensive against Iran.
- Almost 40,000 US soldiers are stationed in Germany.
According to President Donald Trump, the USA is examining a possible reduction of its troops in Germany. A decision is to be made shortly, he wrote on his Truth Social platform.
The announcement follows Trump's clear criticism of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz for making critical comments about the US offensive against Iran. "He has no idea what he's talking about!" Trump wrote on Truth Social on Tuesday with regard to the CDU chairman. He said it was no wonder "that Germany is doing so badly, both economically and in other respects!". He accused the chancellor of agreeing that Iran had nuclear weapons.
Trump had already threatened to reduce the troop contingent in Germany during his first term of office (2017 to 2021). A few months before leaving the White House, he announced that he wanted to withdraw 12,000 of the 35,000 US troops from Germany. Several thousand of these were to be relocated within Europe, while others were to return to the USA. At the time, Trump described the plan as a punishment for what he saw as insufficient German military spending. His successor Joe Biden then halted the plans after taking office.
Thousands of jobs depend on US bases
According to the US military in mid-April, around 86,000 soldiers are currently stationed in Europe - around 39,000 of them in Germany. The number changes regularly, partly due to rotations and exercises.
During the Cold War, US troops were regarded as a security guarantee for Germany and have become an important economic factor for the regions surrounding the bases. Thousands of local personnel are employed by the US military, and thousands of other jobs depend on the US troops, particularly in Rhineland-Palatinate, Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria.
The huge Ramstein airbase near Kaiserslautern alone, with the largest US military community outside the United States, is estimated to generate hundreds of millions of euros in wages, salaries, rents and orders in the regional economy every year. The largest US military hospital outside the USA is currently being built near the base.
Dozens of large US military bases in Europe
There have been dozens of large US military bases in Europe for decades, which are of enormous importance in the global operations of the Americans - for example in the Middle East. They are used to station troops, weapons, ships and aircraft, drones are controlled from there and casualties are also treated. In Germany, in addition to Ramstein Air Base in Rhineland-Palatinate, there is also the US High Command for Europe (EUCOM) in Stuttgart.
At the end of 2025, the US Congress passed a security mechanism according to which the total number of armed forces permanently in the area of responsibility of the European Command may not be below 76,000 for more than 45 days. After that, certain reporting channels would have to be followed in order to initiate a reduction.
Merz reported on Trump's alleged commitment
As recently as March, Trump had assured the Federal Chancellor that the USA wanted to maintain its troop presence in Germany. "That's good news, but I didn't expect anything else," said the CDU chairman in Washington after a meeting with Trump.
In view of Trump's critical stance towards the Europeans as long-standing allies, there had previously been speculation that the president could also withdraw US troops from Germany. Merz did not say whether Trump promised that the US contingent would remain at full troop strength.
Last summer - during an earlier visit by the chancellor to Washington - Trump gave Germany hope that the number of US soldiers stationed there would not be reduced. When asked by a reporter whether he would leave the US troops in Germany, he said: "Yes, we'll talk about it." If Germany wanted the American soldiers there, he was prepared to do so. "Yes, we will do that. That is not a problem."
The state of the relationship between Merz and Trump
If Trump's recent statements are anything to go by, the personal relationship with Merz appears to have reached a low point. Merz countered this impression on Wednesday. "The personal relationship between the American president and myself remains good - at least from my point of view," he said. "We are still in good talks with each other."
Why Merz criticized the US government
For months, the German Chancellor and the US President maintained a fairly good relationship. Recently, however, Merz adopted a new tone and publicly criticized the government in Washington. He accused it of not having an exit strategy for the Iran war. "Because the Iranians are obviously stronger than they thought and the Americans obviously don't have a really convincing strategy in the negotiations either," he said during a discussion with schoolchildren in Marsberg in the Sauerland region.
"The problem with such conflicts is always that you don't just have to get in, you also have to get out. We saw that very painfully in Afghanistan, for 20 years. We saw it in Iraq," continued the Federal Chancellor. In Iran, the Americans had "quite obviously gone into this war without any strategy". This makes it all the more difficult to end the conflict now. "Especially as the Iranians are obviously negotiating very skillfully - or not negotiating very skillfully," said Merz. "An entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership."
Trump is also not on good terms with other Europeans
Merz is not the first top politician in Europe to be massively attacked by Trump. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron have also fallen out of favor with the Republican. Most recently, there was even a row between the US President and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni following his criticism of the Pope.
