Pentagon weighs pulling nearly a third of US forces from Europe

The Pentagon is weighing a plan to withdraw planes, ships, weapons and more than 25,000 US troops from Europe, according to seven current and former US and Western officials, despite warnings from NATO allies about a growing threat from Russia.

The proposal would cut deep into a force the Pentagon puts at roughly 100,000, of which about 65,000 are permanently stationed and the rest rotational. The Defense Manpower Data Center counted 68,064 active-duty personnel permanently based in Europe as of December 2025, spread across 31 permanent bases and 19 additional sites in more than a dozen NATO countries. Germany hosts the largest contingent at roughly 37,000.

Congress anticipated moves like this. The 2026 National Defense Authorization Act sets a statutory minimum of 76,000 US troops in Europe, allowing the administration to fall below that line for no more than 45 days without congressional action. Measured against the full force including rotational units, a cut of 25,000 would leave about 75,000, just under the floor. Measured against permanently stationed troops alone, it would leave roughly 43,000.

The drawdown would also reverse the post-invasion buildup. After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, 20,000 additional troops were sent to Europe, pushing the total including rotational forces to about 84,000 by early 2025.

Some reduction is already underway. The Pentagon announced the withdrawal of roughly 5,000 troops from Germany on May 1, following Trump's dispute with Chancellor Friedrich Merz over the war with Iran.