Trump says 'significant progress' made on establishing permanent US base in Poland

US President Donald Trump says 'significant progress' has been made in negotiations on establishing a permanent US armed forces base in Poland.

Trump announced this on September 17 on the Truth Social network. He did not provide details on the agreements reached, the potential location of the base or its timeline.

Poland officially began seeking a permanent American base in June. On June 16, the country's Council of Ministers adopted a resolution authorizing the Ministry of National Defense to start relevant negotiations with Washington.

The Polish side was tasked with preparing proposals on the location of the future base, necessary military and logistical infrastructure, project cost and sources of financing.

Already on June 18, Polish Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said he had received an official response from Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth. According to him, the American side responded positively to the Polish proposal for a permanent base.

Negotiations continued over the summer and accelerated in September. On September 10, representatives of the Polish Defense Ministry met in Warsaw with a US delegation led by Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense William Cappelletti, whom the Pentagon appointed to lead negotiations on strengthening the American military presence in the country.

Representatives of the US European Command and the American embassy also participated in the talks. The sides agreed on a general schedule for further consultations and decided to create working groups to work out specific issues.

The American delegation also visited Poznań and Powidz, where US service members are already stationed and infrastructure to support American units has been established. Polish authorities are considering existing military facilities and new sites as part of preparing proposals for Washington.

Currently, American troops are already present in Poland both on a rotational and permanent basis. According to Polish and American authorities, about 10,000 US service members are in the country. However, Warsaw has been seeking further expansion of specifically permanent American presence for several years.

The basis for further agreements remains the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement between Poland and the US, signed in 2020. The sides have not yet publicly announced a final decision on the location of a new permanent base, its size or launch timeline.

Based on materials from: Donald Trump, Polish Ministry of National Defense, Government of Poland