Obama: U.S. to send 1K troops to Poland

Emerging from a meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda, Obama said the United States will serve as the lead nation for the beefed-up troop presence in Poland.

“That means the United States will deploy a battalion, roughly 1,000 American soldiers here in Poland on a rotational basis to serve shoulder-to-shoulder with Polish soldiers,” he said.

In addition, a U.S. armored brigade rotating through Europe will have its headquarters in Poland, he said.

“In other words, Poland will be seeing an increase in NATO and American personnel and in the most modern military equipment,” he said.

Duda welcomed the “decisive support” the U.S. is providing to strengthen NATO forces in central Europe and offered condolences on the police shootings in Dallas.

In a lighter moment, Obama thanked his host, said it was wonderful to be back in Poland, and spoke fondly about the Polish community he came to know in Chicago.

Calling Poland one of the “most committed and important allies” in NATO, he said it was a “solemn, binding” duty for the U.S. to defend the country.

Obama then expressed U.S. concerns about actions taken by Duda’s government, which has been accused of taking undemocratic steps, including limiting freedom of the press.

“I expressed to President Duda our concerns about certain actions and the impasse around Poland’s constitutional tribunal,” Obama said. “I insisted that we are very respectful of Poland’s sovereignty and I recognized that parliament is working on legislation to take important steps but more needs to be done.

“And as your friends and ally we’ve urged all parties to work together to sustain Poland’s democratic institutions,” he added. “That’s what makes us democracies, not just by the words written in constitutions or in the fact that we vote in elections, but the institutions we depend on every day, such as rule of law, independent judiciaries and a free press.”