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Everybody knows that here is a strong movement among Freepers to relocate the current US deployment from Germany to other European countries since the German chancellor Schroeder refused to help America with its Iraq campain. They want to punish us Germans with a pull-out since they think that we are economically dependent on the attendance of those troops (BTW - this was never the case and today there would only some unpleasant local effects that are irrelevant to the German economy as a whole).
It doesn't seem to be a good idea since those troops are obviously not welcome in other European places while most Germans at least still see them as good customers for their local products although the German public for sure does not understand them as a contribution to the German security since the end of the cold war. It might be unpolite to say it here, but it is simply the plain truth. It was completely different before 1990, but today?
Personally I think it would be the best idea to transfer those troops to America slow by slow since their presence in Europe does not make much sense anymore.
P.S.
Of course I am extremely thankful for the security those GIs provided during the cold war and for their effort to protect us from the Red Army. It would have been impossible for Europe to live in freedom and welath without them. Therefore I do not want to leave the impression that anybody wants to kick them out. This is definitly not the case. We simply do not see any strategic need for them anymore.