The United States is going to increase the number of its military contingent in Poland, said the US ambassador in Warsaw, Georgette Mosbacher, in an interview with the magazine Polska.
“I cannot tell you now, because the negotiations are still underway. I can say that there will be more of them (American soldiers in Poland. - RT ), ”so the diplomat answered the journalist’s question about the specific number of US troops on Polish territory.
Mosbacher added that Poland is facing a “threat”, apparently referring to Russia - both Washington and Warsaw have repeatedly made statements about “Russian aggression”.
“It is very important that we make progress and try to modernize our forces. Today we face many threats, Poland is at the forefront. The United States is required to be present in the country; this will be a deterrent to these threats. Soon on this issue we will make regular statements and confirm that we want to be here on a permanent basis, ”the ambassador said.
These words came out in response to a question from a Polska journalist about the progress of negotiations on the creation of a US military base Fort Trump in Poland, which Polish President Andrzej Duda offered to host in 2018.
In February of this year, Mosbacher, in an interview with the Financial Times, had already announced a possible increase in the American contingent in Poland. However, soon the Pentagon called the messages distributed by the media on the basis of her words, "ungrounded speculation." Then the official representative of the Ministry of Defense, Eric Pachon, said that the point in the negotiations on this issue has not yet been set.
Oleg Nemensky, a researcher at the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies, noted in an interview with RT that it would be beneficial for Washington to increase the presence of the military contingent in Poland. According to the expert, Donald Trump has turned all Pentagon activities into the sphere of "state corporate entrepreneurship."
“He takes up every opportunity to fill American enterprises with orders. Nevertheless, Washington abandoned the construction project of Fort Trump: the money that Warsaw was prepared to allocate was not enough to house a powerful military base. Instead, the US is ready to strengthen its military contingent, to improve and develop the existing infrastructure in Poland, ”explained the expert.
At the same time, Warsaw believes that the expansion of military cooperation with the Americans will enhance the status of the country as a partner and ally of Washington in Europe, Nemensky added.
“However, the US presence in Poland will not significantly change the situation in the region militarily. Russia has enough strength and means to adequately respond to such challenges, ”the expert noted.
Readiness for construction
Recall that in May 2018, the Polish Ministry of Defense published documents that indicated the readiness of Warsaw to invest in the construction of a US military base from $ 1.5 billion to $ 2 billion.
- US Ambassador to Poland Georgette Mosbacher with Vice President Mike Pence
- Reuters
- © Kacper Pempel
The materials noted that the 2017 US National Strategy, promulgated by the Trump administration, "defines Russian aggression as the main threat to the United States and global stability."
“An increased permanent presence in Poland will provide America with the strategic flexibility it needs to counter and contain these threats,” the report of the Polish Defense Ministry said.
Washington has not yet given a positive response to the request of the authorities of the republic for the construction of Fort Trump, although the Polish Foreign Ministry expected to receive it before the end of 2018.
The initiative to build up the American military presence in Poland comes not only from Warsaw. So, in early April, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the alliance countries will invest $ 260 million in the construction of facilities for the US armed forces on Polish territory. According to him, these steps will strengthen the "military mobility" of the forces of the alliance, necessary for the rapid deployment of troops in the event of their transfer to Poland.
Hegemon of Eastern Europe
Washington and NATO have begun to invest more actively in the development of Poland’s military infrastructure, since it has an important geostrategic position, military expert Ivan Konovalov said in an interview with RT.
"The United States is deploying military infrastructure in the Baltic States, Poland, Romania and other countries that are close to the borders of the Russian Federation in order to create tensions at the Russian borders," the expert said.
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In turn, Vadim Volobuyev, a senior researcher at the Institute of Slavonic Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, said in an interview with RT that Warsaw considers itself a hegemon among Eastern European countries and the main conduit of NATO policy. Increasing its military-industrial complex, the Polish side is trying to further strengthen its position in Europe.
He also noted that with the coming to power in the republic of the conservative coalition, the number of defense initiatives against Russia had increased.
“All the efforts of the Polish side to strengthen the military infrastructure in cooperation with the United States fit in one line - for Warsaw it is important that NATO increase its presence in the republic. Aggressive rhetoric against Russia has been particularly aggravated since October 2015, when the party “Law and Justice” came to power, which makes a name for itself, ”said Volobuev.
American modernization
In addition to deploying American forces on its territory, Poland is actively buying weapons from the United States to modernize the army, Mosbacher said.
“Warsaw has already invested in systems HIMARS, Patriot, it was recently announced its intention to buy F-35 fighter jets. Thus, a lot of progress has been made in improving the equipment and introducing the latest technologies, ”she quotes Polska.
In February of this year, Warsaw signed a contract with the United States to supply 20 American HIMARS multiple launch rocket systems worth $ 414 million. And in April, Polish National Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak announced that the republic was negotiating with Washington to purchase 32 F-35 fifth generation fighters. They should update the Polish Air Force, equipped mainly with Soviet MiG-29 and Su-22.
In March, it became known that Northrop Grumman, one of the largest US arms manufacturers, received a contract for almost $ 350 million to supply Warsaw with an integrated air defense and anti-missile defense system IBCS. It will be used together with the Patriot US missile defense system, the supply agreement of which was signed in 2018. The contract amount was $ 4.75 billion.
According to Vladimir Olenchenko, a senior researcher at the Center for European Studies at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the Polish side explains the costs of American armament under the far-fetched pretext of “Russian aggression”.
“The United States actively uses the Poles in order to deploy their weapons and generate the so-called Russian threat. Warsaw wants to be not just a major ally, but a representative of Washington in Europe. The United States is counting on the fact that Poland will soon distribute American liquefied gas in the region, ”explained Olenchenko.
According to the expert, it is also necessary to take into account that the republic is the European element of the US global missile defense.
“Russia has all the necessary means in this area, in particular the air defense system, to respond to any provocation,” the expert concluded.