#US beefs up military presence in Poland with new defense deal

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US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stands in respect for the Polish military as Poland marks the centennial of the Battle of Warsaw, in Warsaw, Poland today.
AP

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with Poland’s minister of defense in Warsaw Saturday to ink a new military pact with the strategically crucial Eastern European country.

The deal will allow up to 5,500 members of the US military to be based in Poland — an increase over the 4,500 stationed there today.

That number could grow up to 20,000 troops in the face of a threat, said Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak, the BBC reported.

President Trump hailed the agreement as a “historic” strengthening of NATO against ongoing threats from Russia.

“The agreement will enhance our military cooperation and increase the United States military presence in Poland to further strengthen NATO deterrence, bolster European security, and help ensure democracy, freedom, and sovereignty,” Trump said in a White House statement.

Some of the 11,900 troops that that Trump yanked from Germany last month will head east under the new deal.

Trump ordered a steep reduction in the 36,000 US troops stationed there amid an ongoing dispute over NATO fees.

“Germany is delinquent,” Trump said in July.

“The United States has been taken advantage of on trade and military and everything else for many years and I’m here and I’ve been straightening it out,” he said.