US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Tuesday that the United States would station 500 extra military personnel in Germany, in a bid to strengthen ties between the two countries.

US troops to move into Germany

The US secretary of Defence announced that the United States would station 500 more military personnel in Germany, in a bid to strengthen bilateral ties. Austin held talks with Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, the German Minister of Defence, earlier this week, during his first official visit to Europe. “I briefed the minister on our intention to permanently station approximately 500 additional US personnel in the Wiesbaden area as early as this fall,” Austin told reporters.

US troops have been stationed in Germany since the end of the Second World War. However, since the fall of the Berlin Wall, their numbers have dwindled, from around 200.000 soldiers in 1990 to only 34.500 today.

Strengthening ties after Trump

Last year, then-president Donald Trump threatened to withdraw almost 10.000 troops from Germany. However, the Biden administration said back in February that these plans would be shelved, a move welcomed by the German government.

Trump moved to reduce the US military presence in Germany after accusing the Federal Republic of being “delinquent” in its contributions to NATO and accusing Berlin of treating the US unfairly when it came to trade. “We get hurt on trade and we get hurt on NATO,” Trump said at the time. “It’s a tremendous cost to the United States. So, we are going to bring down the soldier count to 25.000 soldiers.”

In a clear break from the Trump administration. Austin announced that Germany shall “continue to be an important security and economic partner” for the US in the coming years. “This is why strengthening our relationship with Germany is a top priority for the Biden-Harris administration,” he said.