THE recent feud between US President Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky has taken a different direction with the EU extending diplomatic support to Ukraine.
The diplomatic sabre rattling has now brought Germany into the centre of the alleged saga, with Donald Trump threatening to pull American troops from Germany and redeploy them in Hungary, reports said, citing a top White House official.
The US has more than 35,000 personnel stationed across dozens of bases on German soil. The NATO member also hosts American nuclear weapons.
Trump could take the forces out and move them to Hungary, which has strongly advocated the ceasefire in Ukraine.
The US president has continuously called for the need to strike a ceasefire as soon as possible and blamed Ukrainian leader Zelensky for the hostilities, while the UK and many other EU nations have reaffirmed their commitment to back Kiev.
Reports suggest, “Trump has expressed his dissatisfaction over the EU’s stance over the ongoing Ukraine War, saying that the EU appears to be pushing the war.”
Brian Hughes, a US national security spokesman, told the newspaper that “while no specific announcement is imminent, the US military is always considering the redeployment of troops around the world to best address current threats to our interests.”
Trump, since assuming office, has accused Germany of not spending enough on its own defence, while his adviser Elon Musk has openly endorsed the opposition anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in the recent parliamentary election.
Vice President J.D. Vance ruffled more feathers in Berlin last month when he criticised Germany’s free speech laws during a high-profile security conference in Munich.
Meanwhile, reacting to the diplomatic fallout in the US Oval Office, Germany’s chancellor-designate, Friedrich Merz, accused Trump of deliberately escalating tensions with Zelensky during the February 28 meeting.
After winning the election last month, Merz said that Germany could no longer rely on the US for its defence and said, “We must now show that we are in a position to act independently in Europe,” he said.
Additionally, during a recent meeting aimed at extending military support to Ukraine, Hungarian PM Victor Orban blocked a joint EU statement promising more military aid for Ukraine.
He said, “Today, President Donald Trump stood bravely for peace. Even if it was difficult for many to digest,” he wrote on X to extend his support to the US.
