Transatlantic Relationship on Its Way Back to Normal

After getting the meeting he wanted with counterpart Donald Rumsfeld, German Defense Minister Peter Struck told reporters the transatlantic relationship was on its way back to normal.

The two met during a NATO summit in Washington on Monday. It was the first time a member of the German cabinet set foot on U.S. soil following the end of the war in Iraq.

"We have now already taken a good step back to normalization between the two countries," Struck said after meeting with Rumsfeld.

Though a scheduled meeting with U.S. National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice had been secured on the agenda, a meeting between Struck and Rumsfeld was anything but certain. Despite having agreed to meet with him, Rumsfeld notably did not appear with Struck for a photo opp following the talk.

Germans to reduce security at U.S. installations

The two agreed to reduce the number of German soldiers guarding U.S. facilities in Germany -- including the embassy in Berlin, cultural facilities like the America House as well as consulates and other properties -- from 3,100 to 2,200.

Prior to the war, major U.S. newspapers reported that Washington was considering pulling many of its troops from Germany and relocating them to less expensive eastern European countries. More than 57,000 U.S. armed forces troops and their families are currently based in Germany and the military has its European Command in Stuttgart. But on Monday that didn't appear to be part of the agenda. Rumsfeld said the Pentagon had not yet found a secure location elsewhere in Europe.

Postwar Iraq dominates NATO meeting

Officials at a NATO meeting attended by both Struck and Rumsfeld discussed security in postwar Iraq on Monday. Though Secretary-General Lord Robertson said NATO troops were currently not being considered to stabilize the war-torn country, White House officials said Robertson and President George W. Bush discussed that possibility during a private meeting.

Struck, who hasn't followed European allies like Spain and Italy in promising troops for postwar Iraq, said he was open to taking part in a possible NATO deployment in the country.

Earlier in the day, a spokesman for the German government made it clear the country would not participate in the current security force proposed by the United States. Spokesman Bela Anda said the country would not join Spain, Italy, Bulgaria, Denmark, the Netherlands and the Ukraine in sending soldiers to postwar Iraq.

In Washington, Struck also met with Rice and Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage. He then headed to Ottawa for a short meeting with Canada's defense minister before returning home to Germany on Tuesday.