“The suspension of the rotation of an armored brigade to Poland is not a punishment, but merely a delay in the rotation,” U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance said. Earlier, Polish politicians had also commented on the matter. “President Karol Nawrocki had already received assurances back in September that the presence of American troops in Poland would not change,” presidential spokesman Rafał Leśkiewicz said earlier. “The U.S. Secretary of Defense confirmed that the United States’ commitment to Poland’s defense and security remains unchanged,” Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz assured after speaking with his American counterpart.
“We have not reduced the number of troops in Poland by 4,000 soldiers. We delayed the deployment of troops that were supposed to be sent to Poland. This is not a reduction, it is simply a standard rotation delay that sometimes happens in situations like this,” Vance said during a briefing at the White House when asked why the United States was “rewarding Vladimir Putin and punishing America’s best ally.”
“Here is the fundamental issue: Poland is capable of defending itself with significant support from the United States. We are not talking about withdrawing all American troops from Europe. We are talking about shifting some resources in a way that maximizes America’s security. I do not think that is bad for Europe. It encourages Europe to take greater responsibility. The United States cannot be the world’s policeman,”
the vice president added.
Vance said that a final decision regarding where the troops would ultimately be stationed had not yet been made.
On Tuesday afternoon, presidential spokesman Rafał Leśkiewicz was asked about the presence of American troops in Poland on Radio Zet. “President Karol Nawrocki (…) received assurances back in September, during his first visit to the United States, that the presence of American troops would not change,” Leśkiewicz said.
He stressed that reports concerning a possible reduction in the number of American troops remain, for now, “in the realm of speculation and media conjecture,” while also noting that talks are ongoing.
“These talks are also being conducted by representatives of the presidential office, and above all by the government; we can see the activity of Minister Kosiniak-Kamysz, who spoke with his counterpart (…). Therefore, everything is proceeding in accordance with the rules of diplomacy, in the interest of the Republic of Poland, and this is how it should have looked from the very beginning,”
Leśkiewicz assessed.
The presidential spokesman also declared that “on security matters, the government can certainly count on the president’s support.”
Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz also addressed the issue shortly after a phone conversation with U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. The Pentagon chief confirmed that American troops would remain in Poland and that, although forces in Europe would be reorganized, Poland would not be affected.
On May 15, Reuters, citing two anonymous U.S. officials, reported that the Pentagon had canceled plans for the rotational deployment of 4,000 American troops to Poland. Meanwhile, CNN reported, citing sources within the U.S. Department of Defense, that the decision to suspend the planned rotation of the American armored brigade was part of a broader series of moves aimed at reducing the number of U.S. forces in Europe. On May 1, the Pentagon announced the withdrawal of 5,000 troops from Germany.