Donald Trump’s threat to hit the “bad guys” of NATO who did not help him in the war in Iran extends from Germany to Italy and Spain. To those who asked him in the Oval Office whether he would also consider the possibility of a reduction in troops for Rome and Madrid, the commander in chief replied “probably”. «Italy was of no help. And Spain was terrible», he added.
«It’s NATO. It’s not even a question of how bad they are. It would be one thing if they had said things politely,” Trump explained. “Look at the level of assistance they are providing to Ukraine. They created a disaster in Ukraine: total chaos. The incredible thing is that they used the Strait of Hormuz, while we don’t use it”, he highlighted, referring to the fact that the passage serves the Europeans more than the Americans. In Italy there are 13 thousand American soldiers in various bases, in Spain 4 thousand.
It is the same threat made against the German chancellor. The cordiality reserved for the German Chancellor at the White House in March, not even two months ago, is now just a memory. In just a few hours, Trump launched a double attack on Friedrich Merz: first by announcing that he was ready to reduce the American troops stationed in Germany, then by advising the German chancellor to deal with “Ukraine and its country in ruins” rather than Iran.
A situation that only increases the pressure on an increasingly weak leader already dealing with internal issues and isolated even among the conservatives who – according to Welt – are already thinking about a successor if a crisis and a minority government were to arrive.
With Trump, the German chancellor pays the price for the very harsh statements made a few days ago, when he went so far as to say that the US is completely “without a strategy to get out of the conflict in Iran”, adding that Tehran’s leadership “is humiliating an entire nation”, the American one. A passage, the latter, which infuriated the tycoon.
So while the two fronts, the external and the internal one, multiply the Kanzler’s troubles, causing a sort of perfect storm (among other things, a few days before the first anniversary of the Union and SPD executive, which will fall on May 6), Berlin responded to the announcement of a “short decision” on the reduction of US troops by saying that it is prepared for this scenario.
Dressed in military uniform for a visit to a Bundeswehr training camp in Munster, Merz, who until yesterday denied that there was a problem with the American president, chanted: «In this turbulent time we follow a clear line. This line remains based on NATO and a reliable transatlantic partnership.”
His Foreign Minister responded instead by entering into the matter: «We are prepared for this, we are discussing it in depth and in a spirit of trust with all NATO bodies, and we await decisions from the Americans on this matter», assured Johann Wadephul.
There are approximately 39,000 American soldiers in Germany, in bases such as Ramstein, Garnison and Grafenwoehr. The timing of Trump’s attacks could not be worse for the CDU leader, whose consensus has dropped dramatically in the polls, while the AfD stands five points above the Union with 27%. And the chancellor would be increasingly isolated even among his own: it was Bild that leaked that, in this climate, it is not excluded that the leader should present himself to the Bundestag and ask for confidence. In a chamber, it must be remembered, where the majority is based on 12 votes. In Germany in crisis, the 174 laws approved in the first year are not enough, nor do its reforms seem convincing.