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U.S. Military Presence in Poland


Updated July 2,2020


h trdcuction
Poland has been a major focus of U.S. and NATO efforts to
deter potentialRussian aggressionin Europe. This is due in
part to its geographic location on NATO's eastern flank,
providing land access to the Baltic states. Although Ukraine
is not a NATO ally, the Russian occupation of Ukraine's
Crimea region in 2014 and subsequent initiation ofa
separatist war in eastern Ukraine underscored to many
observers that NATO allies, particularly those in Eastern
Europe, could once again be threatenedby Moscow. In
response, the United States and its NATO allies have
undertaken a number ofinitiatives to emphasize NATO's
collective defense agreements, thereby assuring allies of
their own security while simultaneously deterring Rus sian
aggression. Poland is a criticalpartner in these efforts.
The United States has bolstered security in Central and
Eastern Europe with an increased rotational military
presence, additional exercises and training with allies and
partners, improved infrastructure to allow greater
responsiveness, enhanced prepositioning of U.S.
equipment, and intensified efforts to build partner capacity
for newer NATO members and non-NATO countries. The
European Deterrence Initiative (EDI), launched in 2014
(originally called the European Reassurance Initiative), an
Overseas Contingency Operations account in the U.S.
defensebudget, is the key fiscal mechanismby which it
does so. U.S. military operational activities of EDI are
executed as part of OperationAtlantic Resolve (OAR).
Approximately 6,000 U.S. military personnel are involved
in OAR at any given time, with units typically operating in
the region under a rotationalnine-month deployment.
A key strategic question facing policymakers in the
executive branch and Congress is whether existing efforts
are sufficient, or whether more should be done to militarily
reinforce Europe generally, and Poland specifically. This
discussion was in part promptedby a 2018 proposalby the
Polish government, which is in favor of an increased U.S.
presence onits territory, under which it would contribute $2
billion toward establishing a U.S. military base in Poland.

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The United States has a rotational military presence in
Poland of approximately 4,500 personnel, including those
involved in OAR and NATO Missile Defense efforts, and
forces as signed to one of four NATO Enhanced Forward
Presence Battle Groups. U.S. forces in Poland include
 an Army division-level Mission Command Element
   (MCE) in Poznan, Poland;
 elements ofarotationalArmy Armored Brigade Conbat
   Team (ABCT) and support units;
 an Army Aviation TaskForce;


 an approximately 750-person Army Logistics Task
   Force based in Poland but with logistics hubs also in
   Lithuania and Romania;
 a U.S. Air Force Detachment at Lask, Poland; and
 a U.S. Navy Detachment in Redzikowo, Poland working
   on the Aegis Ashore missile defense site as part of
   NATO Missile Defense efforts.
The U.S.-led NATO Enhanced Forward Presence Battle
Group s tationedin Orzys z, Poland, includes an 857-s oldier
Armored Cavalry Squadron fromthe Vils eck, Germany-
based U.S. Army 2nd Cavalry Regiment.



On June 12, 2019, the United States and Poland signed a
Joint Declaration on Defense Cooperation Regarding
United States Force Posture in the Republic of Poland. The
declaration proposed adding an additional 1,000 U.S.
rotational military personnel and establishing the following:
 an Army Division Headquarters (Forward). This could
   build on the existing Mis sion Command Element by
   adding staff and command, control, conmunications,
   and intelligence, and planning capabilities;
 a joint U.S./Polish Combat Training Center (CTC) in
   Drawsko Pomorskie and other locations in Poland;
 a U.S. Air Force MQ-9 Intelligence, Surveillance, and
   Reconnaissance Squadron to shareinformation, as
   appropriate, with Poland;
 an AerialPort of Debarkation (APOD) to support the
   movement of forces for training or contingency
   operations;
 an Army Area SupportGroup (ASQ to provide
   maintenance and supply support to current and future
   U.S. forces in Poland;
 a U.S. specialoperations forces capability in Poland to
   support air, ground, and maritime operations. It is
   unclear if this capability is intended to be for command
   and control and planning purposes only, an actual
   operational capability, or a combination of both; and
* infrastructure to support thepresence of an Army
   ABCT, an Army Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB), and
   an Army Combat Sustainment Support Battalion.
A Joint Declaration on Advancing Defense Cooperation,
signed on September 23,2019, announced the specific
locations where many of these elements would be located.
Implementing these initiatives is contingent upon the
signing of a formal bilateral Defense Cooperation
Agreement, which has not yet been concluded.


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