US under fire for troop cuts in Germany

■ Senior lawmakers from German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s ruling conservative bloc yesterday criticised Donald Trump’s decision to order the US military to remove 9,500 troops from Germany.

The move would reduce US troops numbers in Germany to 25,000, from 34,500.

Johann Wadephul, foreign policy spokesman for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group, said all Nato partners benefited from the cohesion of the alliance, and only Russia and China gain from discord.

A US official, who did not want to be identified, said last Friday the move was the result of months of work by US military — and had nothing at all to do with Merkel thwarting Trump’s plan to host a G7 meeting this month.

The withdrawal is the latest twist in relations between Berlin and Washington, which have often been strained during Trump’s presidency. Trump has pressed Germany to raise defence spending and accused Berlin of being a “captive” of Russia due to its energy reliance.