US President Donald Trump has notified that he will raise tariffs on European Union automobiles from 15% to 25% starting this week and significantly reduce US troops stationed in Germany by more than 5,000. The moves are interpreted as retaliation against the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)'s refusal to deploy forces to the Strait of Hormuz. Tensions are rising over whether similar measures will follow against South Korea and Japan, both of which have also shown reluctance to deploy troops.
On Tuesday, Trump announced on Truth Social that he would "raise tariffs on EU-made passenger cars and trucks to 25%," citing the EU's failure to comply with the trade agreement. On the same day, the US Department of Defense (Department of War) announced that "Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the withdrawal of approximately 5,000 US troops from Germany," adding that "the withdrawal will be completed within the next six to 12 months." The figure represents about 14% of the roughly 36,000 US troops currently stationed in Germany. Trump then told reporters on Wednesday that "the scale of the reduction will be far greater than 5,000."
The moves are interpreted as a response to NATO's effective refusal to dispatch warships and other assets in the US-Iran conflict. In particular, Germany was targeted first as it hosts the largest US troop presence in the EU and is a major automobile-producing country. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz publicly criticized the Trump administration on June 27, saying that "an entire country (the United States) is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership."
Attention is also focused on whether Washington will take similar tariff and troop withdrawal measures against South Korea. On June 6, Trump expressed dissatisfaction with South Korea, saying, "US troops are in South Korea to protect it from Kim Jong-un, but South Korea has not helped us."
