“The permanent presence of the US military garrison in Poland indicates that the Americans are planning a permanent engagement in the region. The number of US soldiers permanently stationed in Poland and on NATO’s eastern flank depends on US assessment of threats in the region, PISM expert Artur Kacprzyk told PAP.
Kacprzyk, a specialist in international security from the Polish Institute of International Affairs, referred to the announcement of the establishment of a US army garrison in Poznań in an interview with PAP.
US Army garrison in Poznań
The intention to establish a permanent US military garrison in Poland (US Army Garrison Poland, USAG-P.) was announced in March by Pentagon spokesman General Pat Ryder. It is a permanent unit that supports the presence of American soldiers. The founding ceremony took place on Tuesday in Poznań, at the headquarters of the US Army’s V Corps forward command.
This is the implementation of the decisions announced by President Biden at the Madrid Summit in June 2022
PISM analyst told PAP. As he indicated, the garrison will replace the rotating Regional Support Group. He added that the change of the presence form of the V Corps forward command from rotating to permanent is also underway, which was also announced in Madrid.
The first US units in Poland “permanently”
The PISM expert judged that the significance of the emerging new garrison “is primarily symbolic, but also has a practical dimension”.
Together with the advanced command of the V Corps, these will be the first units to be “permanently” deployed in Poland. This is to demonstrate that US military involvement in Poland will be permanent and long-lasting
he clarified.
Practical problems
Practically, the personnel of both units will serve in Poland for a minimum of one year, while rotations last for 9 months. A longer presence is intended to enable the military and civilians to better understand the specificities of Poland and the region as places where their tasks are carried out, and to cooperate more closely with the Polish Armed Forces. A garrison is a small administrative unit. The task of V Corps is to direct and plan the operations of US land forces in Europe
Kacprzyk noted.
What about the US Army permanent combat units in Poland?
Asked about the possible permanent presence of US combat units in Poland, Kacprzyk emphasized that US combat units in Poland are currently deployed on a rotating basis, but that the rotating presence could be permanent.
As of 2017, a US armored brigade with smaller support forces and a US-led NATO battalion battlegroup are still present in Poland. When each of these units leaves, another takes its place. And the Biden administration declares that these rotations will continue for the long haul
he noticed.
The number of US troops in Poland has more than doubled
The analyst pointed out that the number of US troops in Poland more than doubled after Russia attacked Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
There are now more than 10,000. soldiers. Most of the troops in Poland since last year are being deployed temporarily to stop Russia from escalating its war against Ukraine into a conflict with NATO. The war continues, so these units are alternated
he said.
The expert also pointed out that after the Cold War, the US changed its policy on deploying troops abroad.
In the past, US troops were usually deployed permanently and with their families. However, after the end of the Cold War, this presence was reduced, and when the US deploys additional units somewhere, it usually only sends soldiers on a rotational basis.
he said.
Change of policy to deploy the US military abroad
As he noted, it is about not endangering soldiers’ families on the one hand, and avoiding the costs associated with their relocation, especially the construction of housing estates, schools and other infrastructure, on the other. It is also vital that permanent deployment of troops requires investment in the formation of new units or the relocation of troops from US bases, which would be politically controversial in America. As a benefit of rotation to the US, it is also stated that more units will become familiar with different areas of operations and increase their readiness to respond to different types of aggression.
When asked whether the scenario of a gradual shift of US troops stationed in Western Europe to NATO’s eastern flank is likely, Kacprzyk said “nothing points to it now”.
Many American military personnel still value bases in Germany, Italy or Great Britain. They argue that these bases are less vulnerable to a Russian missile strike and, depending on the need, they can send troops to different places: from Norway to the Black Sea
– added.
How big is the presence of the US military in Poland?
Kacprzyk stressed that the number of US soldiers permanently stationed in Poland and other countries on NATO’s eastern flank will depend on the development of the situation in relation to Russia’s aggressive policies and the US assessment of the threats in the region.
The Biden administration hopes that in the long run it will not have to maintain such a large military presence on the eastern flank as it did for a year, because the war will weaken Russia for a long time and the European allies will seriously strengthen their position. own armed forces
– he added, recalling that the Indo-Pacific region is currently a priority for US security policy.
In any case, the infrastructure will be developed, which will facilitate the rapid transfer of additional US troops to Poland in case of threat
he noted, citing construction of equipment warehouses for the US Armored Brigade in Powidz.
Duties of the US Army garrison in Poznań
The US Army garrison in Poznań will support infrastructure and provide services to soldiers stationed in our country and will consist of 13 military personnel and 140 civilian employees. It will be the eighth US land forces garrison in Europe, alongside similar functioning units in Belgium, Italy and Germany (where there are 5 such units). Until now there has been a Regional Support Group in Poland (Area Support Group Poland, ASG-P). Such units still exist in the Black Sea region (posts in Romania and Bulgaria) and in the Western Balkans (posts in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo).
A statement released Monday by the Ministry of National Defense emphasized that the new unit will be the first permanent garrison of US troops in Poland.
The unit was created thanks to the decision of the US President in 2022 (from the NATO Summit in Madrid – PAP) and will be engaged in infrastructural support for US soldiers stationed in Poland. The duties of the garrison also include the administration and management of US troop outposts in Poland
we are reading.
In early March, the Pentagon announced that the first soldiers permanently assigned to serve in Poland as part of the forward headquarters of the United States Army V Corps in Poznań at the base called “Camp Kościuszko” had arrived in Poland. The forward headquarters of the US Army’s V Corps was located in Poznań by decision of the NATO summit in Madrid in June 2022.
As of 2020, the Forward Command of the V US Army Corps operates in Poznań; in July 2022 it was renamed “Camp Kościuszko”. Its main task is to coordinate the activities and supervision of US ground forces in Europe, operational planning and the cooperation and synchronization of US forces with the forces of other NATO countries. The command plays a key role in integrating US forces deployed in Poland and synchronizing their cooperation with the Polish Armed Forces.
Name “Camp Kosciuszko”, or more accurately Tadeusz Kosciuszko Polish Army Training Camp, was a training camp for more than 22,000 Polish volunteers of General Józef Haller’s Blue Army, which was formed in France. It operated in the years 1917-1919 on the American-Canadian border in the city of Niagara-on-the-Lake.
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rm/PAP
Source: wPolityce