President Donald Trump confirmed in a Wednesday press conference with Poland’s president that the U.S. will send up to 2,000 troops to Poland at that nation’s expense.
President Trump specified in the White House Rose Garden press conference with Polish President Andrzej Duda that he will send 1,000 U.S. troops to Poland for whom Poland has agreed to pay. He added that he may send up to 2,000 and that some may come from Germany, which is not meeting the NATO goal of two percent of GDP defense spending.
Trump pivoted from talk during Q&A with reporters about Germany’s great reliance on a recently constructed natural gas pipeline to Russia to say that Poland has expressed a desire to build a “great facility” and that the nation invited him to go to that facility. The president confirmed that the U.S. will send “a limited force” there.
“We’ll be there, and we appreciate Poland doing what they’re doing,” said Trump. “It’s a great location. It’s a tremendous, it’s a tremendous plant, tremendous facility, and … it’s our honor to be there.”
“Poland’s been a tremendous friend of ours for a long time, and when Melania and I were there not so long ago, it was a very special day,” said President Trump. “I think it was a special day for Poland also, but it was a very special day for our country.”
President Duda expressed gratitude that the U.S. will send more troops to Poland. He also commented on President Trump and first lady Melania’s visit to Poland and lauded the speech President Trump gave there.
Asked how many U.S. troops he would like to see in Poland, President Duda said, through a translator, “This, of course, is always going to be the decision of the United States of America.”
“He’d like to see 250,000 troops,” President Trump interjected, causing President Duda to break out in laughter as President Trump flashed a grin.
“We are very pleased that U.S. troops are present by giving an evidence to the sustainability and strength of the alliance,” Duda returned. “The U.S. soldiers are kindly treated in Poland. They are received as friends, and we are happy that they are serving in our country.”
President Duda added that they would like those bonds between the U.S. and Poland to become even tighter.
In the Oval Office, ahead of the press conference, the two presidents took questions from the press when President Trump stated the U.S. is thinking of moving troops to Poland, “talking about 2,000 troops, taking them from Germany or moving them from another location.”
Michelle Moons is a White House Correspondent for Breitbart News — follow on Twitter @MichelleDiana and Facebook.
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