The Trump Administration’s planned drawdown of troops from Germany took NATO by surprise, and led to a lot more accusations of US unilateralism. Defense Secretary Mark Esper met with NATO officials Friday to try to reassure them that they will consult over any future troop movements.
Germany was never consulted, with German officials learning about it when it broke in the media. Trump Administration officials are presenting that as a special case because of how mad Trump has been about Germany’s military spending.
Esper rehashed Trump’s claim that Germany spending below US demands means they “owe” NATO money, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also accused Germany of not taking Russia seriously.
It’s not clear any other cuts in NATO states are considered by the US, and even the German cuts are expected to see some troops diverted to Poland, because Trump is more keen on Poland’s Conservative government.
NATO is a very demanding partner… just when were they going to consult the American people about their ambitious plans to expand into the Pacific?
Or for that matter, consult Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea about their future places in the NATO Long War machine….
“NATO 2030: How to Make a Bad Idea Worse” – Matthew Ehret, Strategic-Culture, June 23, 2020.
https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2020/06/23/nato-2030-how-make-bad-idea-worse/