The news that the US wants to withdraw its troops from the Jasionka military airport in Poland caught Warsaw completely unprepared. The base is located near Rzeszow in the southeast of the country. The decision is part of a larger strategy to “optimize military operations” of the US, Washington says. The American soldiers will be relocated elsewhere in Poland.
According to information from the American channel NBC, however, the plans are actually different - the Pentagon is discussing the withdrawal of 10,000 American soldiers from Romania and Poland, American and European sources told the media.
America - a guarantor of Polish security
Since the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989, Poland has looked to the United States as a guarantor of its security. NATO membership is the basis for the close bilateral relations between the two countries, which enjoy the support of all political forces in Poland. In early February, the new US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth visited Warsaw and assured the Poles that the American military presence in the country would not be reduced. Currently, about 10,000 American soldiers are stationed in Poland.
Therefore, the latest news and rumors are a heavy blow for Poland, which is an external border of the EU and a neighbor of Ukraine - and this exposes it particularly strongly to aggressive Russian policy. However, the Polish government has shown courage and is trying to downplay the consequences of Washington's decision.
Tusk and Duda: American soldiers will stay
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stressed that the decision was made weeks ago, that Poland was informed and agreed. The United States assured Tusk that American soldiers would remain in Poland and that this did not mean a reduction in the US contingent in the country, which was not planned for either Poland or Europe. The Polish Ministry of Defense called the decision a “planned relocation” of troops.
Polish sources report that the logistics hub in Jasionka has been protected by German Patriot and Norwegian NASAMS air defense systems since January.
The country's President Andrzej Duda also tried to reassure people. "There can be no talks about withdrawing American troops," he said, accusing the media of reporting such plans. Duda is affiliated with the opposition national-conservative bloc and is close to the Trump administration. In March, the Polish president even traveled to the United States to meet with his American counterpart.
The head of Poland's National Security Council, Gen. Dariusz Lukowski, announced that activities at the Jasionka base would not be restricted and suggested that the American decision to withdraw its troops from there was related to economic motives. The US military has been stationed in Jasionka since the beginning of 2022. The military airport near Rzeszow is in close proximity to the Ukrainian border and has become the most important logistical hub for transferring Western weapons to the attacked country. Nearly 95% of military aid to Ukraine has passed through this military base.
Is this a bad sign after all?
However, the Polish media do not share the optimistic tone of the politicians. “This is a bad sign”, writes Bartosz Wielinski in “Gazeta Wyborcza”. “In corporate jargon, “optimization” means cutting costs. At the helm of America are currently people who want to turn the state into a corporation. They cut with an axe, not a scalpel”. Wilinski warns that the US policy of deterring Russia has suffered greatly.
“Trump is destroying the hard and soft power of the US”, writes Bogdan Hrabota in “Żecpospolita”. “This is bad news for Kiev and good news for Moscow, because the Kremlin is already aware that the new US president will cause problems and is not a responsible statesman”.
“Putin is grateful for the gesture”
Former Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz shares this assessment. “This is not good news”, he told the Polish TV channel TVN24. “The US decision is ill-considered. They should have waited for the situation with the war in Ukraine to change. In this way, they are effectively weakening the West against Russia. And in my opinion, this is intentional”.
This decision should be seen as a change in US foreign policy, Čaputović added. “Vladimir Putin is certainly grateful for this gesture. It also confirms the newfound cooperation between Russia and the US”.
The presidential election in Poland is on May 18, and the American decision also plays a role in domestic politics. “We must sound the alarm”, said former Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki of “PiS”. According to him, the US president is clearly not sure about his relationship with the Tusk government, which is “very bad news”.
“I am disappointed that the government did not take action against this. The claims that the troop move was planned are just an attempt to save their reputation”, said Morawiecki. “Duda has built good relations with America, but unfortunately the Tusk government did not want to continue them. The consequences are visible today”, the politician believes.
Author: Jacek Lepiarz