The scaling back would bring the number of US troops on the continent to that before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Pentagon said that was in line with Trump's 'America first' agenda.
The chief Pentagon spokesman, Sean Parnell, said in a statement that the US was reducing the number of its soldiers on the continent as a result of a "comprehensive, multilayered process" focused on US posture in Europe.
A BCT comprises 4,000 to 4,700 personnel, according to a congressional report.
The cut brings US soldiers stationed on the continent to 2021 levels, Parnell said. The US sent additional troops to Europe after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Why is the US reducing troops in EU under Trump The latest announcement is in line with US President Donald Trump's wider policies toward Europe.
Since returning to the White House last year, Trump has made clear that he expects European countries to take over more responsibility for the continent's security from the US.
The urgency of the matter was further exacerbated amid several blows to the transatlantic relationship, most notably Trump's attempts to take control of the Arctic island of Greenland, an autonomous territory within the Kingdom of Denmark.
Parnell said that the decision to reduce US troops is "designed to advance President Trump's America First agenda in Europe and other theaters, including by incentivizing and enabling our NATO allies to take primary responsibility for Europe’s conventional defense." What to make of US canceling troop deployment to Poland To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video US reduces troops in Germany, delays deployment to Poland Vice President JD Vance told reporters earlier on Tuesday that a US troop deployment to Poland had been delayed.
Parnell confirmed the news in his statement, citing the "temporary delay" as a result of a reduction of brigade combat teams to Europe.
"The Department will determine the final disposition of these and other US forces in Europe based on further analysis of US strategic and operational requirements, as well as our allies' own ability to contribute forces toward Europe's defense," Parnell said.
This followed a public spat between Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who criticised the US war on Iran and said Washington was being "humiliated" in negotiations with Tehran, unleashing Trump's fury.
The top US military commander in Europe said on Tuesday that the bulk of US troops withdrawn from Europe are being drawn from an armored brigade that was in the process of deploying to Poland as opposed to yanking forces already stationed in Poland and Germany.
Edited by: Rana Taha
