31 resultsfor “Trump criticism of Germany's Merz”
Trump scolds Germany’s Merz for criticism of Iran war President Donald Trump has hit out at Germany
Trump threatens Germany with US troop reduction after Merz’s Iran war criticism – Europe live
Germany, suggesting he could soon reduce the U.S. military presence there as he continues to feud with Chancellor Friedrich Merz over the U.S-Israel war against Iran. Trump made the threat after Merz earlier this week
Criticism of the US-Israeli war against Iran from Merz and other European leaders has clearly aggravated Trump. The latest rift came after Merz said on 27 April that [Iran was “humiliating” Washington](https://www.theguardian.com
Trump has, over the past 48 hours, said that he is considering withdrawing American troops stationed in Germany, Italy and Spain, amid mounting tensions with European nations over their criticism of his handling
Germany’s Merz again as rift over Iran war widens President Donald Trump has [renewed his attacks](/news/2026/4/28/trump-scolds-germanys-merz-for-criticism-of-iran-war) on German Chancellor Friedrich Merz as the rift between the United States and one of its closest
criticism of Trump. On Friday he posted on X that he had spoken with Trump by telephone while the US president was [travelling home from China](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/may/15/trump-china-visit-iran-agreement-xi-jinping-elusive) and that they had discussed Iran
Trump and the Pentagon have said in recent weeks that they were drawing down at least 5,000 troops in Germany after Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the U.S. was being "humiliated" by the Iranian leadership
Merz appeared to change his views on the US and Israel’s war in Iran. Trump has long criticised Washington’s NATO allies in the EU for overly relying on the US, spurring governments such
Trump previously criticised Merz over his suggestion that the US had been "humiliated" by Iranian negotiators. It is unclear whether the additional troops for Poland were part of those withdrawing from Germany or a separate
Merz's initial comments, the US defence department announced a plan to withdraw 5,000 troops form Germany - an order which has been attributed to Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. Germany's defence minister said
Trump administration's announcement Friday that it would withdraw troops from Germany sparked concerns among European allies, raising fresh questions about the durability of the NATO alliance and America's long-term commitment
Germany, a redeployment ordered by Donald Trump amid a feud with the German chancellor, [Friedrich Merz](https://www.theguardian.com/world/friedrich-merz). The German government sought to play down the severity of Trump’s move, describing
Trump had threatened to withdraw some troops from the NATO ally earlier this week after Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the U.S. was being "humiliated" by the Iranian leadership and criticized Washington's lack of strategy
Merz gives a statement during his visit to the army at the Bundeswehr base in Munster, Germany, Thursday, April, 30, 2026.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/4388x4388+932+0/resize/100/quality/85/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F0d%2F11%2F51894cdd43449b58ba3fad8e96ea%2Fap26120441310041-1.jpg)](https://www.npr.org/2026/05/02/nx-s1-5808891/europe-allies-germany-troop-withdrawal-us) ### [Europe](https://www.npr.org/sections/europe/) ### [Germany says U.S. troop withdrawal 'anticipated'; Spain
critic of the war from the very outset,** repeatedly facing all sorts of angry reactions and threats from Trump in response, [including of a trade embargo](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/04/pedro-sanchez-donald-trump-threat-cut-off-trade-spain) or a suspension of Nato membership
Merz was "doing a terrible job" and had "problems of all kinds", including on immigration and energy. Trump has also suggested pulling US troops from Italy and Spain. The US has a significant military presence
Germany now finds itself without a seat on the UN security council,” she said. The Social Democrats, junior partners in the ruling coalition, joined in the criticism, saying the vote was “not a mere hiccup
Germany](https://www.theguardian.com/world/germany), with a determination to be made over the next short period of time”. On Monday, Friedrich Merz suggested the Trump team was [being outplayed in its negotiations with Iran](https://www.theguardian.com
Trump attacked his German counterpart in another social media post on Thursday, stating that Merz should spend more time trying to end the war between Russia and Ukraine and less time “interfering with those that