According to a press release from the Polish Ministry of Defense (MON), the Polish side is actively working to guarantee the presence of American forces on its territory, both economically and logistically. The legal basis for these actions is the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), signed in Warsaw on August 15, 2020.
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One of the possible manifestations of this cooperation would be the proposal of General Christopher Todd Donahuecommander of the United States Army in Europe and Africa.
« General Christopher Todd Donahue presented a proposal to transfer to Poland an armored brigade combat team (ABCT), accompanied by its support assets, as part of the APS (Army Prepositioned Stock) program of the American army “, indicated the Polish Ministry of Defense in a press release sent to Euronews.
As the ministry pointed out, this approach triggered a series of meetings and working discussions, in accordance with the sharing of skills provided for by the EDCA agreement.
« The proposal provides for the coordination of actions aimed at identifying suitable sites and developing a bilateral action plan taking into account key issues such as infrastructure requirements, timetables, resource allocation, legal framework, distribution of competences and responsibilities, as well as operational design mechanisms », a précisé le ministère.
The United States renounces deploying four thousand soldiers in Poland
As Euronews was able to confirm, Washington, despite previous declarations by President Donald Trump, is abandoning the plan to deploy four thousand soldiers in Poland. This relocation decision was to be part of a broader Pentagon strategy providing for the withdrawal of five thousand soldiers stationed in Germany.
This decision comes against a backdrop of growing tensions between Washington and Berlin, after the chancellor Frederic Merz criticized the American – Israeli military operations in Iran, considered ill-considered. President Trump responded with a series of virulent messages, calling on Merz to devote himself to “putting his own country back in order.”
In Warsaw, there had been speculation for weeks about the possibility of seeing some of the troops withdrawn from Germany transferred to Poland. After the revelation of this information, the Deputy Prime Minister Władysław Kosiniak‒Kamysz tried to temper expectations, emphasizing that it is part of the adjustments already announced to the American system in Europe and that the growing capabilities of the Polish army, as well as the American forces already present in the country, are in any case strengthening the eastern flank of NATO.
President Karol Nawrocki, for his part, declared, alongside NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte during the Bucharest Format 9 (B9) summit: “ If President Trump decides to transfer troops from Germany, Poland is ready. » He repeated this during a press conference on May 6, during joint military exercises in Lithuania.
Mark Rutte avoided detailed questions on this subject during the Bucharest conference, contenting himself with emphasizing that the American presence in Europe remains “very important and significant”. Currently, between eight and ten thousand American troops are stationed in Poland.
Who is General Christopher Donahue?
General Christopher Todd Donahue is one of the best-known figures in the American army. Since 2024, he has been commander of the United States Army in Europe and Africa and head of NATO Land Forces Command. Previously, as commander of the 82nd Airborne Division, he oversaw security at Kabul Airport during the evacuation of US and allied forces from Afghanistan in 2021: he was the last US soldier to leave the Afghan capital. Reuters revealed this information, which the US army confirmed.
In February 2022, just after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Donahue arrived in Poland at the head of a preparatory group of the 82nd Airborne Division, landing at Jasionka Airport, near Rzeszów. He also participated in training and advising Ukrainian officers.
At the end of February this year, he visited Warsaw, where he met with US Ambassador Tom Rose and the Chief of General Staff of the Polish Army, General Wiesaw KukuÅ‚a. On this occasion, the latter presented him with the medal of the General Staff of the Polish Armed Forces “in recognition of his contribution to international security and the development of cooperation with the armed forces of the Republic of Poland”.
Discussions between the two generals focused on the security of NATO’s eastern flank, including the principles of the European Deterrent Line Initiative, as well as the role of deep strike capabilities and strengthening the US military presence in Poland.
