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By Sophie Tanno, Sebastian Shukla, CNN

(CNN) — A spat between the US and Germany has reached new heights, with US President Donald Trump threatening to pull some American troops from the country amid disagreements about the US-led campaign in Iran.

“The United States is studying and reviewing the possible reduction of Troops in Germany, with a determination to be made over the next short period of time,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform Wednesday night.

It comes as Berlin and Washington have been at odds over the US’ approach to the war with Iran. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz drew Trump’s wrath this week for comments he made on Monday, in which he said the US was being “humiliated” by Iran and criticized the administration for not having an effective strategy to end the war.

There are 36,436 active-duty US military personnel permanently stationed in Germany, according to data from the US Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) released in December 2025 – a number markedly higher than in other European countries. Trump previously threatened to reduce troop numbers in the country in 2020, during his first tenure in office and while Angela Merkel held the German chancellorship.

Friction between European leaders and the Trump administration has intensified due to the US-Israeli war, which the US launched without notifying most NATO allies. Germany was informed in advance of the initial strikes, a government spokesperson told the Associated Press. European countries have refused to become directly involved in the conflict, instead emphasizing the importance of finding a diplomatic solution. Trump in return has threatened to reconsider the US’ NATO membership and has referred to the military alliance as a “paper tiger.”

Like some other European countries, Germany has offered limited military support to the US, most notably allowing the use of its military infrastructure, such as air bases, for operations related to the conflict — thought it has not permitted these to be used as staging grounds for direct offensive strikes.

Merz has also pledged further German assistance under the condition the conflict moves to a post-war phase. This could include participation in a possible international stabilization mission.

To that effect, Berlin recently announced a naval minesweeper will be deployed to the Mediterranean Sea in preparation for efforts to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, once a lasting end to hostilities is reached. This move followed calls from Trump for allies to send warships and minesweepers to help secure the strait. Germany is part of a coalition led by Britain and France seeking to ensure the safe passage of vessels through the crucial waterway. These actions have however failed to satisfy Trump.

Merz’s attitude towards the war has also shifted. In the hours following the beginning of the campaign, he insisted “this is not the moment to lecture allies.” His tone altered following a March visit to the US, when he said he could not “see any clear strategy.”

The disagreement between Berlin and Washington deepened further on Monday, when Merz starkly criticized US attempts to extricate itself from a war it entered without laying out clear objectives.

“The whole affair is ill-considered to say the least,” he said, while emphasizing Berlin’s desire for the war to end as soon

By Avni Trivedi, CNN

(CNN) — Sky-gazers will be in for a treat this month with two full moons gracing the sky.

The first, which has the nickname the flower moon, will peak at 1:23 p.m. ET Friday. However, it will appear full Thursday night, Friday and Saturday, according to EarthSky.

It will rise low in the east at sunset on Friday, reach the highest point in the sky around midnight and lie low in the west before sunrise on Saturday.

“There’s a moment on May 1 where the moon will be at its fullest in the moment, but 24 hours before and 24 hours later, to the human eye it’s going to look full,” said Noah Petro, project scientist for the Artemis III mission, which aims to land humans on the moon for the first time since 1972.

May’s first full moon will kick off a series of three micromoons, when the new or full moon reaches apogee, or its greatest distance from Earth, according to EarthSky. The moon will be 249,180 miles (401,017 kilometers) away compared with its average distance of 238,855 miles (384,399 kilometers), according to NASA.

The second micromoon, referred to as a blue moon, will peak and appear fullest at 4:45 a.m. ET on May 31 before the sun rises.

It will be the second full moon of the month — a calendrical blue moon, when a month starts and ends with a full moon. It happens seven times every 19 years, according to EarthSky.

Petro recommends avoiding bright streetlights, tall buildings and trees to get the best view of a full moon.

“It’s going to rise right around sunset,” Petro said, “ so just have a little bit of patience and you’ll be treated to the spectacular view.”

More about the moons

The first full moon in May also falls on May Day, which represents the halfway point between the March equinox and the June solstice, respectively signifying the beginning of spring and summer in the Northern Hemisphere.

The nickname flower moon comes from the Comanche tribe. It is a fitting name as the full moon arrives when wildflowers begin to bloom across much of North America, and especially in the Great Plains, where the Comanche are from. However, indigenous tribes have various names for this full moon.

The Potawatomi and Shawnee people refer to it as the strawberry moon, while the Choctaw and Creek call it the mulberry moon, as it aligns with the peak ripening and harvesting time for strawberries and mulberry trees, respectively. The Tlingit people call it the “moon before pregnancy,” with the successive June moon appropriately called the birth moon.

The name of May’s second full moon may suggest the satellite will change colors, but that is not the case. The term blue moon originates from a 16^th century expression “the moon is blue,” referring to something that was impossible. In 1883, however, after the eruption of the Krakatoa volcano in Indonesia, people reported seeing strangely colored sunsets and a “blue moon,” according to Britannica.

It’s a rare occurrence, but those people may have actually seen a blue moon, as it can appear that color when Earth’s atmosphere contains dust or smoke particles that are slightly wider than 900 nanometers, according to EarthSky.

The Artemis II effect

The flower moon will be the first

CNN

By Michael Rios, David Culver, Carlos Martinelli, Mary Triny Mena, CNN

Miami (CNN) — A commercial passenger plane took off from the US to Venezuela on Thursday morning for the first time in nearly seven years, as the countries continue to restore economic ties following the ouster of Venezuela’s strongman leader in January.

The inaugural American Airlines flight will last just under 3.5 hours, departing from Miami to Caracas at 10:16 a.m. ET, before landing at Simon Bolivar International Airport at 1:36 p.m. local time. It is scheduled to return to Miami later Thursday afternoon.

American Airlines said it is the first US carrier to relaunch a daily service to the South American country, using an Embraer 175 dual-class aircraft operated by Envoy, the airlines’ wholly owned subsidiary.

The excitement was palpable before the flight in Miami International Airport, where music was blaring at the boarding gate alongside free food, including the country’s staple dish of arepas, and balloons in the color of the Venezuelan flag. One TSA worker looked at a boarding pass and said to CNN: “Caracas? I’ve not seen that destination in a while.”

Onboard the plane, around two-thirds of the seats were taken due to weight restrictions and were largely filled with journalists and officials.

The airline had announced its intent to resume flights in January, the same day US President Donald Trump instructed the Department of Transportation to take steps to reestablish air service to Venezuela.

Flights to Caracas vary in price depending on the date of departure, type of ticket and route. A search on the American Airlines website shows a round-trip ticket departing Miami early May and returning end of the month is costing more than $1,000.

It was similarly festive at Simon Bolivar International Airport, about 16 miles west of Caracas, as a saxophonist played “Theme from New York, New York.”

Ricardo Mariani told CNN that he is traveling on the afternoon American Airlines flight back to Miami to attend his daughter’s graduation in Florida and to get his vision checked.

“It is a big opportunity for the country, for all of us,” Mariani said at Simon Bolivar International Airport. “Before it could take an entire day flying from layover to layover.”

The Venezuelan said the flight layovers were risky due to a condition impacting his vision. “I had been waiting for this flight for years,” he added.

Normalizing relations

American, once considered the largest US airline operating in Venezuela, had suspended service in 2019, when the US Read more

By Tal Shalev, CNN

(CNN) — An Israeli grain importer has said it will not receive the cargo of a ship allegedly carrying stolen Ukraine grain after the vessel became the focus of a major diplomatic spat between the two countries.

The Israel Grain Importers Association said that the cargo – which Kyiv says was stolen by Russia from occupied Ukrainian territories and had been scheduled to be unloaded at the port of Haifa – would need to go elsewhere.

“The Russian supplier of the wheat shipment will be required to find an alternative destination for its discharge”, the association said in a statement.

MarineTraffic tracking data showed the bulk carrier Panormitis sailing away from the port of Haifa on Wednesday afternoon, though it was not immediately clear where the ship might be headed.

The decision follows days of escalating tensions between Ukraine and Israel following the arrival of Panormitis in the Bay of Haifa last weekend .

On Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Israel of knowingly allowing previous shipments of allegedly stolen grain to be unloaded and warned of possible sanctions against those involved if the practice continued.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry pushed backed, claiming Ukraine had delayed submitting formal paperwork and evidence, before later adding that the request was under examination.

A spokesperson for the Grain Importers association told CNN that the import company, Zenziper, was unaware of any irregularities regarding the shipment and had learned of the claims through media reports.

“The company sought government guidance but with no clear directive decided to reject the shipment independently, despite the risk of legal action from the supplier,” the spokesperson said.

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha hailed what he called a welcome development and said it sent a clear signal to other shipping companies and governments to stay away from stolen Ukrainian grain.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry appeared to distance itself from any suggestion it had caved to pressure, instead saying that Ukraine’s most recent request for legal assistance “contained significant factual gaps and did not include any supporting evidence [that the grain was stolen].”

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine more than four years ago, Kyiv has consistently accused Moscow of the systematic looting of its agricultural resources – the true origin of which it says is hidden when the stolen grain is sold on world markets.

According to an investigative report in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, at least four shipments of illegal grain have docked in Israel this year. The report added that such deliveries have been ongoing since 2023, with the total number reaching over 30.

The European Union also weighed in earlier this week, requesting additional information from Israeli authorities on the alleged imports and warning it may impose sanctions on those involved as well.

“We condemn all actions that help fund Russia’s illegal war effort and circumvent EU sanctions and remain ready to target such actions by listing individuals and entities in third countries, if necessary,” an EU spokesman told CNN.

Israel and Ukraine’s relations have been persistently tense since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. Israeli leaders have sought to keep channels open with both Kyiv and Moscow, limiting military assistance to Ukraine mainly to non-lethal humanitaria