*** Joint Press Statement by the Federal Foreign Office and the Federal Ministry of Defence ***

On the subject of the US announcement of changes to the US troop presence in Germany, the Federal Government, represented by Niels Annen, Minister of State at the Federal Foreign Office, and Dr Peter Tauber, Parliamentary State Secretary at the Federal Ministry of Defence, today (29 July) informed the German Bundestag and selected Minister-Presidents as follows:

According to the information available, the US Administration is planning to reduce the number of soldiers permanently stationed in Germany to a maximum of 25,000. 6400 soldiers are to return to the United States, some of them being relocated from there on rotational deployments in Europe. 5600 soldiers are to redeploy permanently elsewhere in Europe.

As far as is known at present, the following are affected by the redeployments:

• the USEUCOM and USAFRICOM Headquarters currently based in Stuttgart,
• the Vilseck garrison (part of Grafenwöhr) in Bavaria and
• Spangdahlem airbase in Rhineland-Palatinate.

The US plans are not yet final and may be subject to further change. Some of the redeployments could happen in the short term, but the majority will require longer preparation.

The Federal Government takes note of this decision and, with regard to further implementation, will coordinate closely with the federal Länder affected, the US Administration and within NATO.