U.S. general wants troop cut plans in Europe dropped

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Army's commander in Europe said on Tuesday plans to cut the number of American troops on the continent should be scrapped because the current force size was needed to conduct training exercises with allies.

General Carter Ham, the head of U.S. Army Europe, said two brigades based in Germany should remain there rather than move to the United States in 2012 and 2013 as planned. That would keep about 42,000 U.S. soldiers based in Europe.

Ham said he had recommended the change of plans to General John Craddock, the head of U.S. European Command and NATO's Supreme Allied Commander. Any decision to cancel the move would ultimately come from the Pentagon.

In December 2007, the Pentagon announced a delay in the brigades' move, originally scheduled to take place by 2011. A U.S. Army brigade has between 3,000 and 5,000 soldiers.

"My recommendation to General Craddock, who is my operational boss, is to reconsider the decision for the two brigades that are scheduled to come back to the U.S.," Ham told reporters at the Pentagon.

"We talk a lot about building partner capacity," he said. "Sometimes the only way you can really do that is to have U.S. forces that can partner with our European (allies') forces."

The two brigades under discussion are the 2nd Brigade of the Army's 1st Armored Division, based in Baumholder, and the 172nd Infantry Brigade, based in Grafenwoehr and Schweinfurt.

(Reporting by Andrew Gray; Editing by Eric Beech)