500 troops to be added by US in Germany: Austin

Berlin, April 13: Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin announced on Tuesday that he is expanding the US military presence in Germany by 500 troops, suggesting he will not carry out a Trump administration order to withdraw thousands of them.

“This planned increase in US personnel underscores our commitment to Germany and the entire NATO alliance,” Austin said in a notable counterpoint to the Trump administration's repeated complaints that Germany is a weak partner on defence and security.

Austin made the announcement after talks with German Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer on his first tour of Europe since becoming Pentagon chief in January. Kramp-Karrenbauer welcomed the announcement as a “strong signal” of a healthy US-German relationship. They also discussed a pending decision by President Joe Biden on whether to withdraw completely from Afghanistan by May 1, a deadline the Trump administration pledged to the Taliban militants.

Germany is a key part of the US-led coalition in Afghanistan. Austin said at a joint news conference with Kramp-Karrenbauer that the extra 500 US troops will be stationed permanently in Germany's Wiesbaden area as early as this fall.

“These forces will strengthen deterrence and defence in Europe. They will augment our existing abilities to prevent conflict, and, if necessary, fight and win,” Austin said in prepared remarks. “This move will also create more space, more cyber, and more electronic warfare capabilities in Europe,” he added, and he said it will “greatly improve our ability to surge forces at a moment's notice to defend our allies.”

Last year, President Donald Trump ordered the withdrawal of 12,000 troops from Germany as retribution for what he considered Germany's refusal to spend more on its own defence. Austin suspended that move shortly after taking office. He said decisions on troop levels would be made as part of a comprehensive review of the US military presence around the world, including in Europe.

Austin's announcement on Tuesday is the first concrete indication that he may not carry out the Trump decision, which included moving US European Command headquarters from Germany to Belgium.

The US currently has about 35,000 troops in Germany. Asked by a reporter whether the decision to add 500 troops means Washington will not carry out Trump's move, Austin said the Pentagon has “ceased planning” for troop reductions. The German minister said she had Biden's word that “there will be no troop reduction as was previously planned.”