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President Donald Trump announced Thursday that talks over establishing a permanent United States Army base in Poland have advanced significantly, a move he framed as a historic step in the two countries' alliance even as his administration conducts a broader review of American troop levels across Europe.
"Thanks to the bold leadership of my friend, Karol Nawrocki, President of Poland, major progress is being made toward establishing a U.S. Army base in Poland," Trump wrote on social media, adding that a specific location would be announced "very soon."
Polish President Karol Nawrocki responded on social media platform X, confirming his government's commitment to deepening military ties with Washington. "We are ready to continue our efforts to strengthen our defense cooperation: seriously, responsibly, and always together," he wrote, pledging that "the Polish government will do its utmost to provide the best possible location for the US Army base."
Nawrocki, a conservative allied with Trump, visited the White House last year, during which Trump offered to increase the number of US troops stationed in Poland.
The announcement follows comments last month from Polish Deputy Defence Minister Pawel Zalewski, who told public broadcaster TVP that Warsaw and Washington were actively discussing whether to establish a permanent US base on Polish soil.
"We have already completed the initial stage of the process, not to mention the political will, which was expressed long ago," Zalewski said.
Roughly 10,000 US troops are currently deployed in Poland, though almost entirely on a rotational rather than permanent basis. Poland, a NATO and European Union member, borders both Ukraine and Russia along the alliance's eastern flank and spends approximately five percent of its GDP on defense.
Trump's statement arrives as his administration carries out a formal review of its military footprint across Europe, a process that has stirred concern among allies that Washington could ultimately scale back its forces on the continent.
The push for a US base in Poland also follows tension between Washington and several European governments. US officials have criticized a number of European countries for declining to let American forces use NATO bases on their territory during the conflict between the United States and Iran.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has separately warned he could reduce Washington's financial contribution to NATO if member states fail to meet defense spending commitments agreed at last year's alliance summit in The Hague, where members pledged to raise security spending to five percent of GDP by 2035, including 3.5 percent dedicated specifically to military expenditures.
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