NATO chief welcomes decision on more US troops in Poland
PR dla Zagranicy
Grzegorz Siwicki
13.06.2019 12:00
NATO’s chief has welcomed Wednesday’s announcement that the United States will increase its military presence in Poland.
Polish President Andrzej Duda (centre), First Lady Agata Kornhauser-Duda (left), and US President Donald Trump (right) during a reception at the White House on Wednesday following the signing of an agreement on an increased US troop presence in PolandPhoto: EPA/ZACH GIBSON
Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said in a Twitter post that the announcement “shows the strong commitment of the United States to European security and the strength of the transatlantic bond.”
America will deploy around 1,000 more troops to Poland, a staunch military ally fearful of Russia, under a declaration signed by the Polish and US presidents on Wednesday.
The declaration signed by the two presidents on Wednesday included plans to set up an American divisional command in Poland responsible for US forces on the eastern flank of the Western military alliance, Polish Radio reported.
The Polish public broadcaster said that a logistics base would also be created, along with units supporting special forces and the air force, as well as modern centres for training NATO troops.
Polish President Andrzej Duda last week flew to Brussels to brief NATO’s Stoltenberg on the details of the deal for a stepped-up US military presence in Poland.
The NATO chief in early April confirmed plans for a multi-million storage site for US military equipment in west-central Poland amid fears of an increasingly assertive Russia.
Stoltenberg said at the time that NATO member countries would earmark USD 260 million for the project.
The new facility is expected to house armoured vehicles, ammunition and weapons for a brigade of troops.
Poland in March marked two decades since it became a member of the Western military alliance.
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Source: IAR