New Pentagon chief praises Germany for hosting U.S. troops, reversing Trump's tack

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin praised Germany for hosting U.S. troops in a call with his German counterpart on Wednesday, fueling speculation that President Joe Biden could overturn a drawdown ordered by his predecessor Donald Trump.

Austin plans to carry out a global review of U.S. troop positioning, which would include Trump's order last year to eventually withdraw about a third of the 34,000-strong U.S. troop contingent in Germany.

Trump, declaring that "We don’t want to be the suckers any more,” faulted the close U.S. ally for failing to meet NATO’s defense spending target and accused it of taking advantage of the United States on trade.

Austin took a different tack.

"Secretary Austin expressed his gratitude to Germany for continuing to serve as a great host for U.S. forces," the Pentagon said in a statement following Austin's call with German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/pentagon-chief-praises-germany-hosting-215917007.html

[SunSeeker]

1. It's sad that this is newsworthy. It should just be normal operating procedure...

But we haven't had much of that in the last 4 years.

[Baked Potato]

2. Putin's gonna need a Rolaids holster now that Dump is gone.