US is likely to redeploy troops to Poland from elsewhere in Europe, not send in new ones – Trump

Poland has been craving more US troops on its soil for months, and President Donald Trump says its wish may come true as US may relocate its soldiers there from elsewhere in Europe.

The revelation was made by the US leader as he signed a declaration on “advancing defense cooperation” with his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda on Monday.

“Probably, we will be relocating troops from other European countries and won't be sending the new ones there,” Trump said.

The signed declaration encompasses several locations which Poland has to develop and where the US troops will be stationed. A US Air Force “remotely piloted aircraft squadron,”  i.e. a drone base, will be deployed to the country. It is not immediately clear if it will house only surveillance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or the US weapon of choice - the killer drones - as well.

All in all, Warsaw and Washington agreed on six locations that will station a 1,000-strong force of additional, non-permanent US troops. Poland has been wooing the US for some time, asking for a permanent military base, while expressing readiness to spend some $2 billion on it – and even to name it “Fort Trump.”

Poland’s burning desire to host more US troops has been explained by the country’s top politicians as being a response to the alleged menacing “Russian threat.”

Moscow, for its part, has repeatedly denied that it harbours any plans to attack Poland or whomever in Eastern Europe, calling out Warsaw’s US troops-attracting activities as a true destabilizing factor.

When asked by reporters if the move to send 1,000 additional soldiers to Poland (on top of the 4,500 already stationed there) was meant to counter Russia, however, Trump denied it.

“No, I don't think so at all,” he said, surprisingly contradicting the openly proclaimed Polish goals.

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