Nato allies bewildered by Donald Trump’s U-turn on US troop moves in Europe

Nato allies and defence officials have expressed bewilderment at President Donald Trump’s announcement that he would send 5,000 US troops to Poland just weeks after he ordered the same number of forces to be pulled out of Europe.

The apparent change of mind came after weeks of statements from Mr Trump and his administration about reducing – not increasing – the American military footprint in Europe.

Mr Trump’s initial order set off a flurry of action among military commanders and left allies already doubtful about America’s commitment to Europe’s security to ponder what forces they might have to backfill on Nato’s eastern flank with Russia and Ukraine.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration said it was reducing levels in Europe by about 5,000 troops, and US officials confirmed about 4,000 service members were no longer deploying to Poland.

The dispatch to Germany of US personnel trained to fire long-range missiles was also halted.

But in a post on Truth Social on Thursday, Mr Trump said he would send “an additional 5,000 troops to Poland”, citing his strong ties with Polish President Karol Nawrocki, whom Mr Trump endorsed in elections last year.

“It is confusing indeed, and not always easy to navigate,” Swedish foreign minister Maria Malmer Stenergard told reporters at a meeting on Friday that she was hosting of her Nato counterparts, including US secretary of state Marco Rubio.

Ministers from the Netherlands and Norway were sanguine about Mr Trump’s latest move, as was Latvian foreign minister Baiba Braze, who said allies knew the US troop “posture was being reconsidered, and now there is no change of posture. For now”.

US defence officials also expressed confusion.

“We just spent the better part of two weeks reacting to the first announcement. We don’t know what this means either,” said one of two officials who spoke on condition of anonymity.

But Mr Rubio said Washington’s allies understand that changes in the US troop presence in Europe will come as the Trump administration reevaluates its force needs.

“I think there’s a broad recognition that there are going to be eventually less US troops in Europe than there has historically been for a variety of reasons,” he said.

The latest surprise came despite a US pledge to co-ordinate troop deployments, including one from Nato’s top military officer, US Lt Gen Alex Grynkewich, on Wednesday.

Mr Trump’s initial announcement that he would withdraw troops came as he fumed over remarks by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said that the US was being “humiliated” by the Iranian leadership and criticised what he called a lack of strategy in that war.

Mr Trump told reporters that the US would be cutting even more than 5,000 and also announced new tariffs on European cars. Germany is the continent’s biggest car producer.

Mr Rubio insisted that Mr Trump’s decision “is not a punitive thing”, adding: “It’s just something that’s ongoing.”

He has often been called on to offer a less antagonistic US presence at meetings with European partners, but Mr Rubio did skip the last Nato gathering of foreign ministers in December.

About 80,000 US troops are stationed in Europe. The Pentagon is required to keep at least 76,000 troops and major equipment on the continent unless Nato allies are consulted and there is a determination that such a withdrawal is in US interests.

The withdrawal of 5,000 troops might drop numbers below that limit.

But Mr Trump’s latest post suggests that troop numbers in Europe would not change. Polish foreign minister Radek Sikorski welcomed the decision to send more forces to his country, saying it ensures that “the presence of American troops in Poland will be maintained more or less at previous levels”.

Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte also welcomed the move. On Thursday, before Mr Trump took to Truth Social again, Mr Rutte had underlined that it was important for Europe to take care of its own security.

“We have a process in place. This is normal business,” he told reporters.

At Nato headquarters in Brussels, meanwhile, US officials briefed the allies on the Pentagon’s aims for its commitments to the Nato Force Model, which involves contingency planning for Europe’s defence in the event of serious security concerns.

It was widely expected that a further reduction of US forces would be coming.

Asked whether any cuts were announced, Mr Rutte said: “I’m afraid it’s much more complicated than that.”

He said the procedure “is highly classified” and declined to give details.

Mr Rubio played down concerns about a shift in US force levels in Europe, saying: “Every country has to constantly re-evaluate what their needs are, what their commitments are around the world, and how to properly structure that.”