Senior US senators have demanded an explanation from the Pentagon after media reports said it had abruptly paused the deployment of a 4,000-strong US armored brigade to Poland, raising concerns on NATO’s eastern flank.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that the Pentagon had halted the planned rotational deployment of the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team from the 1st Cavalry Division to Poland, despite some troops and equipment already being en route to the country.
But Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz denied that the roughly 10,000 US troops stationed in Poland would be reduced, saying Warsaw had received no notification of cuts and that talks with Washington were focused on strengthening – rather than cutting – both troop numbers and operational capabilities.
There was no immediate clarification from US officials over Washington’s intentions regarding its military presence in Poland, which fears aggression by Russia amid Moscow’s war in Ukraine.
Senators seek answers
Republican Senator Roger Wicker, who heads the Senate Armed Services Committee overseeing the US military, told Polish state news agency PAP that he was in contact with the Pentagon but had not received sufficient explanations regarding the move.
Democratic Senator Tammy Duckworth, who is also a member of the Armed Services Committee, said she was “horrified” by the reports.
She said that had the Pentagon consulted her beforehand, she would have opposed the move, adding that Washington must continue supporting its Polish allies.
Jeanne Shaheen, another Democratic senator, said she had also learned of the matter through media reports.
She added that she opposed reducing US troop numbers in Europe and argued that if 5,000 soldiers are withdrawn from Germany, they should instead be redeployed to NATO’s eastern flank.
The Pentagon announced last week that it would withdraw about 5,000 US troops from Germany following a public spat between President Donald Trump and Chancellor Friedrich Merz over the war with Iran.
No cuts planned: Warsaw
Officials in Warsaw sought to calm concerns that the reported halt to the deployment of the rotational armored brigade to Poland signaled a broader reduction of America’s military presence in the country.
Kosiniak-Kamysz said the US troop withdrawal from Germany could result in different American units being deployed to Poland than originally planned, but insisted the changes would not affect the overall troop numbers in the country.
A senior US administration official also told PAP that Washington had previously considered relocating the 5,000 troops withdrawn from Germany to Poland.
Poland eyes more troops
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski on Thursday discussed Warsaw’s readiness to host additional US troops during a meeting with the American ambassador to Poland, Tom Rose, the foreign ministry said.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki, a right-wing ally of Trump, said last week that Poland was prepared to receive any US troops withdrawn from Germany, adding that Warsaw already had the infrastructure needed to accommodate them.
Poland hosts around 10,000 US soldiers—the second-largest American troop presence in Europe after Germany—most of them deployed on a rotational basis.
Asked last Friday about Poland’s desire to host troops leaving Germany, Trump told reporters: “Well Poland would like that. We have a great relationship with Poland.”
The prospect of US troop reductions in Europe has been a recurring theme of Trump’s presidency, even as the continent faces its most serious security challenge since the end of the Cold War.
Last December, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act, which prohibits the Pentagon from reducing US troop levels in Europe below 76,000 without formally certifying to lawmakers that such cuts would not undermine US or NATO security interests.