Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Moravecki expressed the hope that at least part of the US troops whom Washington intends to withdraw from Germany will be relocated to Poland. He announced this on the air of the RMF FM radio station. According to him, the deployment of additional American troops in the country will strengthen the "eastern flank of NATO."

“I really hope that as a result of our many negotiations ... some of the troops that are now based in Germany and are being withdrawn by the United States ... will really come to Poland. The decision is now up to the United States, ”Moravecki said. 

Currently in Poland there are about 5 thousand American soldiers. Warsaw has repeatedly taken the initiative of expanding the military presence of the United States in the country under the pretext of a “Russian threat”. In November 2019, Moravecki spoke about Washington's plans to increase the American contingent tenfold.

In an interview with RT, Igor Maksimychev, a leading researcher at the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences, noted that modern Poland positions itself as the “spear point” of the Western world facing Russia. The leadership of the republic sees in the increase in American troops not so much a guarantee of security as an instrument of pressure and provocation against Moscow.

“For this reason, the possible redeployment of US troops from Germany to Poland will not strengthen international security. Moreover, the deployment of the American contingent in the republic will become a new challenge for Russia and Belarus, which border Poland, ”Maksimychev stated. 

In turn, RISI expert Oksana Petrovskaya, a doctor of historical sciences, believes that Poland expects to become the leading US ally in Europe in the future. That is precisely why Warsaw focuses exclusively on Washington in the defense sector, and now the republic is trying to capitalize on problems between Germany and the United States, Petrovskaya says.

“Now Poland takes advantage of the serious contradictions that have arisen between the United States and Germany. Warsaw demonstrates its readiness to deploy almost any number of American troops on its territory, recalling the forgotten idea of ​​creating the so-called Fort Trump, ”Petrovskaya stated.

"The Pillar of the American Presence"

Earlier, information about the upcoming reduction in the US military contingent in Germany was disseminated by Western media. According to Reuters and Bloomberg, by the fall, the American group will be cut by 9.5 thousand people. Now its number is 34.5 thousand soldiers. In turn, the German magazine Der Spiegel reported that the Pentagon intends to withdraw from Germany from 5 to 15 thousand troops.

The decision to significantly reduce the US military presence was made by the head of the White House, Donald Trump. According to the American media, the corresponding order was recorded in the memorandum, signed by US Presidential Adviser on National Security Robert O'Brien.

At the moment, the Trump administration and the FRG government have not officially confirmed this information. However, Johann Vadeful, deputy chairman of the ruling CDU / CSU faction in the Bundestag, commented on a planned withdrawal of part of the American contingent in an interview with Reuters. The parliamentarian reproached the White House for taking unilateral steps on a similar issue.

  • US President Donald Trump
  • Reuters
  • © Tom Brenner

As Igor Maksimychev explained, Berlin considers the reduction of the American grouping as a negative phenomenon in the security sphere. According to him, since the Cold War, the FRG has become accustomed to feeling the main “pillar of the American military presence in Europe,” although German society lacks militaristic sentiments and the desire to provoke Russia.

“Paradoxically, I think that in the current conservative ruling party in Germany, there are strong fears of a new reality in which US military custody will weaken. This is a kind of inertia. At the same time, many in the society understand the potential risk for Germany, where a large American group and tactical nuclear weapons are deployed, ”said Maximychev.

One way approach

Western media have linked Trump’s decision to withdraw several thousand American soldiers, including the refusal of German Chancellor Angela Merkel to participate in person at the G7 summit, which was announced on May 29 by official representative of the German government Steffen Seibert.

It was planned that the event will be held in late June in Washington. The President of the United States personally initiated the meeting of the G7 leaders in the traditional format. However, the German Chancellor insists that the epidemiological situation does not yet allow face-to-face meetings between world leaders.

According to the American publication Politico, contradictions continue to grow between Trump and Merkel. In particular, the German Chancellor disputes the unilateral approach of the White House on a number of foreign policy issues, including the problem of relations with Russia and China. Another point of tension in US-German relations is the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline project.

In addition, Trump regularly condemns Berlin for not wanting to increase defense spending to 2% of GDP. Now this figure in Germany is less than 1.4%, although in monetary terms, the German budget for military needs has grown significantly in recent years: from € 39 billion in 2018 to € 49.67 billion in 2020.

Igor Maksimychev called any "acts of disobedience" by the US government Merkel "unthinkable courage." In his opinion, Berlin is not yet ready to firmly defend its interests and take truly radical steps. Nevertheless, the expert notes that the trend of growing contradictions in US-German relations is gaining momentum.

  • German Chancellor Angela Merkel
  • Reuters
  • © John Macdougall / Pool

Oksana Petrovskaya holds a slightly different point of view. She believes that, despite the formally allied relations, Germany every year more and more moving away from the United States and gradually getting out of American influence.

“Trump is annoyed that Berlin refuses to allocate the necessary, from his point of view, amount of money for defense and NATO programs. He considers the current state of affairs to be unfair and speaks with Germany in the usual language of ultimatums. But in Germany they neatly make it clear that they do not intend to fulfill the demands of the Americans to the detriment of their interests, ”says Petrovskaya.

In addition, according to the RISI expert, Berlin is trying to adhere to a “more or less reasonable policy” in relation to Moscow, without escalating the situation on the western borders of the Russian Federation. At the same time, the possible transfer of part of the American contingent to Poland contradicts the interests of Germany in the field of security. 

“Berlin understands that the more NATO troops will be deployed near Russian borders, the more tense the relations with the Russian Federation will be. Most likely, in Germany they are seriously worried that the US troops can really be moved to Poland. Such a step will become a threat to security for the whole of Europe, ”Petrovskaya emphasized.