Richard Grenell - Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org Let No Man Take Your Crown Mon, 12 Aug 2019 12:14:21 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/cropped-Screen-Shot-2024-05-16-at-1.06.13-PM-32x32.png Richard Grenell - Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org 32 32 US Nuclear Weapons Should Be Out of Germany Along With Its Troops, German Lawmaker Says https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/us-nuclear-weapons-should-be-out-of-germany-along-with-its-troops-german-lawmaker-says/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=us-nuclear-weapons-should-be-out-of-germany-along-with-its-troops-german-lawmaker-says Mon, 12 Aug 2019 12:14:21 +0000 http://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=28571 AP Photo/Mindaugas Kubis US Ambassador Richard Grenell’s renewed criticism of Berlin’s failure to spend more on defense and praising an idea to withdraw American troops from Germany has prompted a backlash in one of Washington’s key allies in Europe. The … Read More

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]]> Members of US Army’s 2nd Cavalry Regiment ride on an armored vehicle
AP Photo/Mindaugas Kubis

US Ambassador Richard Grenell’s renewed criticism of Berlin’s failure to spend more on defense and praising an idea to withdraw American troops from Germany has prompted a backlash in one of Washington’s key allies in Europe. The head of the left-wing party Die Linke’s parliamentary group has welcomed this idea.

Member of the German Parliament Bundestag Dietmar Bartsch has told the German editorial network RND that the German government should “absolutely accept” US Ambassador Richard Grenell’s offer and not only discuss a plan to pull out US troops from Germany but also try to get rid of Washington’s nuclear weapons in the country.

“The US ambassador is right: US taxpayers should not have to pay for US troops in Germany. The US taxpayers also do not have to pay for deploying nuclear weapons in Germany. If the Americans pull their soldiers out, they should take their nuclear weapons with them”, he demanded.

He insisted that they should take them back home and not to Poland, noting that the latter scenario “would be another dramatic escalation in relations with Russia, which does not coincide with European and German interests”.

However, not everyone on the left-wing of the German political spectrum seemed to like the idea. German MP Carsten Schneider, who represents the Social Democrats, called Grenell’s statements, which echoed an earlier remark by US Ambassador to Poland Georgette Mosbacher, “completely inappropriate for allies”. He stated that Germany cannot be blackmailed and that the “general’s pose wears off”.

The criticism was prompted by Grenell’s recent interview with the German news agency DPA, in which he stated that it was “insulting to expect that the US taxpayer pays for more than 50,000 Americans in Germany, but the Germans use their trade surplus for domestic purposes” and backed Donald Trump’s idea to relocate troops from Germany to Poland.

Mosbacher earlier noted that Poland meets its payment obligation of 2% of GDP, as agreed upon within NATO, while Germany does not do that, so it would be better if American troops go to Poland.

Although Germany announced plans to increase military spending up to 1.35% in 2019 and hopes to boost the number up to 1.5% by 2023, it still falls short of planning to reach the 2% goal, set by NATO members in 2014.

Trump has persistently criticized Germany’s reluctance to comply with this voluntary goal since having taken office. He also previously suggested that a 2,000-strong increase to American forces stationed in Poland should be achieved at the expense of those based in Germany.

Meanwhile, US warheads deployed in Germany have been a point of heated debates within the country with many, including politicians from coalition junior partner, the SPD, demanding that US nuclear weapons be removed from its territory.

Source: https://sputniknews.com/military/201908121076530440-us-nuclear-weapons-germany/

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]]> Germany likely to renege on pledge to Trump to boost military spending https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/germany-likely-to-renege-on-pledge-to-trump-to-boost-military-spending-2/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=germany-likely-to-renege-on-pledge-to-trump-to-boost-military-spending-2 Fri, 22 Mar 2019 20:07:32 +0000 http://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=26624 BERLIN – Berlin could renege on its pledge to raise military spending, in the latest gesture of defiance by German Chancellor Angela Merkel toward U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump has repeatedly blasted NATO leaders for not meeting a target of spending … Read More

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]]> BERLIN – Berlin could renege on its pledge to raise military spending, in the latest gesture of defiance by German Chancellor Angela Merkel toward U.S. President Donald Trump.

Trump has repeatedly blasted NATO leaders for not meeting a target of spending 2 percent of economic output on defense. If confirmed at a Cabinet meeting Wednesday, the move by Berlin would be the latest step in the gradual estrangement between the U.S. and one of its top European allies.

While the budget foresees an increase in military spending in 2020, it does not provide a plan for how to reach the 2 percent target.

The German government’s budget plan for 2020 calls for a 1.7 percent hike in spending to €362.6 billion and relies on ministries cutting costs to avoid incurring new debt given forecasts for slower economic growth, Finance Ministry sources said Monday.

The plan assumes that Europe’s largest economy will grow by 1.0 percent in 2019, down from an initially projected 1.8 percent, the sources said.

The Economy Ministry last week said the economy had a subdued start to 2019 and probably grew moderately in the first quarter, its outlook dampened by trade conflicts and sluggish demand for industrial products among other factors.

To balance the budget, government ministries will have to identify combined spending cuts of €625 million each year, with program delays and other measures to contribute additional savings, the sources said.

They said military spending would rise by €2.1 billion over a previous plan for 2020, boosting the share of defense spending to 1.37 percent of gross domestic product from 1.25 percent in 2018 and 1.3 percent this year.

“That the German government would even be considering reducing its already unacceptable commitments to military readiness is a worrisome signal to Germany’s 28 NATO allies,” said U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell.

The military budget is slated to rise to €45.1 billion in 2020 from planned spending of €43.2 billion this year, a separate government source said.

However, the share of military spending would drop back to 1.25 percent in 2023, with any further spending increases to be negotiated year by year, the sources said. “We’re taking it one step at a time,” said one of the sources.

That leaves Germany well below the 2 percent target set by NATO members for 2024, and below the 1.5 percent share that Germany has pledged to meet by that date.

Source:  Go to source

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]]> Germany likely to renege on pledge to Trump to boost military spending https://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/germany-likely-to-renege-on-pledge-to-trump-to-boost-military-spending/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=germany-likely-to-renege-on-pledge-to-trump-to-boost-military-spending Mon, 18 Mar 2019 08:57:18 +0000 http://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/?p=26625 BERLIN – Berlin could renege on its pledge to raise military spending, in the latest gesture of defiance by German Chancellor Angela Merkel toward U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump has repeatedly blasted NATO leaders for not meeting a target of spending … Read More

The post Germany likely to renege on pledge to Trump to boost military spending first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

]]> BERLIN – Berlin could renege on its pledge to raise military spending, in the latest gesture of defiance by German Chancellor Angela Merkel toward U.S. President Donald Trump.

Trump has repeatedly blasted NATO leaders for not meeting a target of spending 2 percent of economic output on defense. If confirmed at a Cabinet meeting Wednesday, the move by Berlin would be the latest step in the gradual estrangement between the U.S. and one of its top European allies.

While the budget foresees an increase in military spending in 2020, it does not provide a plan for how to reach the 2 percent target.

The German government’s budget plan for 2020 calls for a 1.7 percent hike in spending to €362.6 billion and relies on ministries cutting costs to avoid incurring new debt given forecasts for slower economic growth, Finance Ministry sources said Monday.

The plan assumes that Europe’s largest economy will grow by 1.0 percent in 2019, down from an initially projected 1.8 percent, the sources said.

The Economy Ministry last week said the economy had a subdued start to 2019 and probably grew moderately in the first quarter, its outlook dampened by trade conflicts and sluggish demand for industrial products among other factors.

To balance the budget, government ministries will have to identify combined spending cuts of €625 million each year, with program delays and other measures to contribute additional savings, the sources said.

They said military spending would rise by €2.1 billion over a previous plan for 2020, boosting the share of defense spending to 1.37 percent of gross domestic product from 1.25 percent in 2018 and 1.3 percent this year.

“That the German government would even be considering reducing its already unacceptable commitments to military readiness is a worrisome signal to Germany’s 28 NATO allies,” said U.S. Ambassador Richard Grenell.

The military budget is slated to rise to €45.1 billion in 2020 from planned spending of €43.2 billion this year, a separate government source said.

However, the share of military spending would drop back to 1.25 percent in 2023, with any further spending increases to be negotiated year by year, the sources said. “We’re taking it one step at a time,” said one of the sources.

That leaves Germany well below the 2 percent target set by NATO members for 2024, and below the 1.5 percent share that Germany has pledged to meet by that date.

Source: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/03/19/world/politics-diplomacy-world/germany-likely-renege-pledge-trump-boost-military-spending/#.XJXw76BKiUk

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