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President Donald Trump said the United States will send an additional 5,000 troops to Poland, a move that has undercut recent administration messaging about drawing down American forces in Europe. The announcement, made on Truth Social, came amid weeks of shifting statements that had already left allies seeking clarity about how much U.S. support would be available for the NATO region as the war in Ukraine continues.
In his post, Trump said, “Based on the successful Election of the now President of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, who I was proud to Endorse, and our relationship with him, I am pleased to announce that the United States will be sending an additional 5,000 Troops to Poland.” The statement raised uncertainty for European partners who have been reacting to earlier U.S. remarks about reducing troop levels in Europe rather than increasing them, according to the Associated Press report.
The confusion traces back to earlier Trump and Pentagon statements that the U.S. was reducing its presence in Europe by about 5,000 troops. U.S. officials also confirmed that about 4,000 service members had stopped deploying to Poland, a development the AP said was tied to efforts to comply with Trump’s order to reduce the number of troops in Europe.
As of last week, the AP reported that some 4,000 troops from the Army’s 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division were no longer en route to Poland. It also said a deployment to Germany of personnel trained to fire long-range missiles was halted, adding to the sense among allies and lawmakers that decisions were moving in multiple directions.
U.S. defense officials told the AP they were still trying to interpret Trump’s new announcement. One official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters, said, “We just spent the better part of two weeks reacting to the first announcement, We don’t know what this means either,” describing a breakdown in continuity between earlier messaging and the latest declaration.
The Pentagon, meanwhile, has characterized earlier steps affecting Poland deployments as temporary rather than permanent. Chief Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell told reporters Tuesday that the change was a “temporary delay” and described the U.S. approach as supporting a “model U.S. ally.” He said the delay was linked to the U.S. reducing the number of brigade combat teams assigned to Europe from four to three, and he indicated the Pentagon still needed to decide which troops would be stationed where.
It was not immediately clear, the AP said, whether the affected brigade would resume deployment to Poland later, whether additional troops beyond rotational forces could be added, or whether a drawdown would still occur but from a different country. When asked for clarity, the Pentagon referred requests to the White House, which did not immediately respond to messages seeking additional explanation.
Poland’s leadership appeared to receive Trump’s statement positively. The AP reported that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Defense Undersecretary Elbridge Colby spoke with their Polish counterparts this week, and that Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Wednesday he was happy to hear “Washington’s declaration that Poland will be treated as it deserves.”
The announcement also arrived as Secretary of State Marco Rubio was traveling to Sweden to meet with NATO counterparts who have been questioning U.S. policies on reduced troop levels in Europe. Ian Kelly, a retired career diplomat who taught international relations at Northwestern University, told the AP that there seemed to be “no process to deliberating policies like troop withdrawals and deployments at the top,” and said Rubio could face difficulty explaining the changes to Europeans who want consistency.
U.S. lawmakers also criticized the drawdown signals and the impact on allies. Republican Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska told a congressional hearing he had spoken with Polish officials and that they were “blindsided,” calling the decision “reprehensible” and saying it was “an embarrassment to our country what we just did to Poland,” according to the AP report.
Associated Press writer Michelle L. Price and Emma Burrows in London contributed to this report.