U.S. troops will stay in Poland, Trump assures Polish leader

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump affirmed that the United States will keep a robust military presence in Poland as he had a warm meeting Wednesday with the country’s new president, Karol Nawrocki.

Trump had taken the unusual step of endorsing Nawrocki in the Polish elections earlier this year, and as the leaders sat side by side in the White House, Trump said the U.S.-Polish relationship has always been strong but “now it’s better than ever.”

When asked by a reporter whether the U.S. planned to continue placing troops in Poland, Trump said the U.S. would and “we’ll put more there if they want.”

“We’ll be staying in Poland. We’re very much aligned with Poland,” Trump said.

The visit to Washington is Nawrocki’s first overseas trip since taking office last month. The former amateur boxer and historian, who was backed by the conservative Law and Justice party, was hoping to deepen his relationship with Trump at a fraught moment for Warsaw.

Nawrocki thanked Trump for his support and, in a nod to the bonds between their countries, gave a shout out to the millions of Polish Americans in the U.S.

“Those relations for me, for Poland, for Poles, are very important,” Nawrocki said.

He added that those bonds are based on shared values of independence and democracy.

In a news conference after his meeting, Nawrocki said he and Trump discussed expanding the U.S. military presence in Poland.

“There were specific discussions regarding this project,” he said.

He also said he considered it “a major success” that Trump provided a guarantee of Poland’s security.

At the White House, Trump said he was proud to have endorsed Nawrocki and lauded him for winning his election.

“It was a pretty tough race, pretty nasty race, and he beat them all. And he beat them all very easily, and now he’s become even more popular as they got to know him and know him better,” Trump said.

Trump is increasingly frustrated by his inability to get Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to sit down for direct talks aimed at ending the war between Poland’s neighbors.

Trump last month met with Putin in Alaska and then with Zelenskyy and several European leaders at the White House. The Republican president emerged from those engagements confident that he would be able to quickly arrange direct talks between Putin and Zelenskyy and perhaps three-way talks in which he would participate.

But his optimism in hatching an agreement to end the war has dimmed as Putin has yet to signal an interest in sitting down with Zelenskyy.

“Maybe they have to fight a little longer,” Trump said in an interview with the conservative Daily Caller published over the weekend. “You know, just keep fighting — stupidly, keep fighting.”

Trump and Zelenskyy are scheduled to speak Thursday, according to a White House official. The official requested anonymity to discuss the yet to be formally announced call.

The call comes as Zelenskyy is in Paris to meet with European allies on Thursday to discuss postwar security guarantees they might be able to provide with the United States.

There is also heightened anxiety in Poland, and across Europe, about Trump’s long-term commitment to a strong U.S. force posture on the continent — an essential deterrent to Russia.

Some key advisers in his administration have advocated for shifting U.S. troops and military from Europe to the Indo-Pacific with China’s lock as the United States’ most significant strategic and economic competitor. Currently, there are about 8,200 American troops stationed in Poland, but the force level regularly fluctuates, according to the Pentagon.

When Nawrocki arrived at the White House, Trump gave him a hearty slap on the shoulder and stood with him as they watched U.S. military jets soaring over the South Lawn.

A group of F-16s flew in a missing man formation as a tribute to a Polish Air Force F-16 pilot, Maj. Maciej “Slab” Krakowian, who died in a crash in Poland on Aug. 28.

“Thank you for this gesture,” Nawrocki later told Trump.

Trump made clear before Poland’s election this spring he wanted Nawrocki to win, dangling the prospect of closer military ties if the Poles elected Nawrocki. Trump even hosted him at the White House before the vote.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem also traveled to Poland shortly before its May election to tell Poles if they elected Nawrocki and other conservatives they would have a strong ally in Trump, who would “ensure that you will be able to fight off enemies that do not share your values.”

Ultimately, Polish voters went with Nawrocki in a tight election over liberal Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski.

Most of the power in Poland’s parliamentary system rests with an elected parliament and a government chosen by the parliament. The president can veto legislation and represents the country abroad. Nawrocki has tense relations with the government of Prime Minister Donald Tusk, an ally of Trzaskowski.

Nawrocki has echoed some of Trump’s language on Ukraine.

He promises to continue Poland’s support for Ukraine but has been critical of Zelenskyy, accusing him of taking advantage of allies. Nawrocki has accused Ukrainian refugees of taking advantage of Polish generosity and vowed to prioritize Poles for social services such as health care and schooling.

At the same time, Nawrocki aimed to stress to Trump that Russian aggression in Ukraine underscores that Putin can’t be trusted and that a strong U.S. presence in Poland remains an essential deterrent.

Russia and its ally Belarus are set to hold joint military exercises this month in Belarus, unnerving Poland as well as fellow NATO members Latvia and Lithuania.

Associated Press writers Geir Moulson in Berlin and Konstantin Toropin contributed to this report.

华盛顿（美联社）——美国总统唐纳德·特朗普周三与波兰新任总统卡罗尔·纳沃茨基举行了热情会晤，并重申美国将继续在波兰保持强大的军事存在。

今年早些时候，特朗普采取了不同寻常的举动，公开支持纳沃茨基参加波兰大选。当两位领导人在白宫并肩而坐时，特朗普表示，美波关系一直很牢固，但“现在比以往任何时候都更好”。

当记者问及美国是否计划继续向波兰驻军时，特朗普表示美国会继续驻军，“如果他们需要，我们会在那里增派更多军队”。

“我们将继续留在波兰。我们与波兰的立场非常一​​致，”特朗普说。

此次访问华盛顿是纳沃茨基上个月就任总统以来的首次海外访问。这位前业余拳击手兼历史学家得到了保守派法律与公正党的支持，他希望在华沙局势紧张之际，加深与特朗普的关系。

纳沃茨基感谢特朗普的支持，并提及两国之间的深厚情谊，向数百万居住在美国的波兰裔美国人致意。

“对我、对波兰、对波兰人来说，这些关系都非常重要，”纳沃茨基说。

他还补充说，这些纽带是建立在独立和民主的共同价值观之上的。

纳沃茨基在会晤后的新闻发布会上表示，他和特朗普讨论了扩大美国在波兰的军事存在。

他说：“我们曾就这个项目进行过专门的讨论。”

他还表示，特朗普保证波兰的安全，他认为这是一项“重大成就”。

在白宫，特朗普表示，他很自豪能够支持纳沃罗基，并称赞他赢得了选举。

“这是一场非常艰难、非常激烈的竞选，但他击败了所有人。而且他赢得非常轻松，现在随着人们对他了解得越多，他的人气就越高，”特朗普说。

特朗普越来越沮丧，因为他无法让俄罗斯总统弗拉基米尔·普京和乌克兰总统弗拉基米尔·泽连斯基坐下来进行旨在结束波兰邻国之间战争的直接会谈。

特朗普上个月在阿拉斯加会见了普京，随后又在白宫会见了泽连斯基和几位欧洲领导人。这位共和党总统从这些会晤中自信地表示，他能够迅速安排普京和泽连斯基之间的直接对话，甚至可能安排他本人参与的三方会谈。

但由于普京尚未表示有兴趣与泽连斯基坐下来谈判，他对达成结束战争的协议的乐观态度已经减弱。

特朗普在周末发表于保守派媒体《每日来电》的采访中表示：“或许他们还得再打一段时间。你知道，就这么继续打下去——愚蠢地继续打下去。”

据一位白宫官员透露，特朗普和泽连斯基计划于周四通话。这位官员要求匿名，以便讨论这次尚未正式宣布的通话。

泽连斯基在巴黎与欧洲盟友会面之际发出这一呼吁。他将于周四与美国讨论战后安全保障问题。

波兰和整个欧洲也对特朗普长期致力于在欧洲大陆保持强大的美国军事存在感到日益焦虑——这对于威慑俄罗斯至关重要。

鉴于中国已成为美国最重要的战略和经济竞争对手，他政府中的一些关键顾问主张将美军从欧洲转移到印太地区。目前，约有8200名美军驻扎在波兰，但据五角大楼称，驻军人数经常波动。

纳沃茨基抵达白宫时，特朗普热情地拍了拍他的肩膀，并与他站在一起，观看美国军用飞机在南草坪上空翱翔。

一群 F-16 战机组成“失踪者队形”飞行，以此悼念 8 月 28 日在波兰坠机身亡的波兰空军 F-16 飞行员马切伊·“斯莱布”·克拉科夫少校。

“谢谢你的这份心意，”纳沃茨基后来对特朗普说。

今年春天波兰大选前，特朗普就明确表示希望纳沃茨基胜选，并承诺如果波兰人选择纳沃茨基，美波兰将加强军事联系。特朗普甚至在投票前还在白宫接待了纳沃茨基。

国土安全部长克里斯蒂·诺姆在波兰 5 月大选前不久也前往波兰，告诉波兰人，如果他们选举纳沃茨基和其他保守派人士，他们将拥有特朗普这个强大的盟友，特朗普将“确保你们能够击退那些与你们价值观不同的敌人”。

最终，波兰选民在一场势均力敌的选举中支持了诺罗基，击败了自由派华沙市长拉法尔·特扎斯科夫斯基。

波兰议会制的大部分权力掌握在民选议会及其选举产生的政府手中。总统可以否决立法，并代表国家出访。纳沃茨基与总理唐纳德·图斯克领导的政府关系紧张，图斯克是特拉斯科夫斯基的盟友。

纳沃茨基在乌克兰问题上重复了特朗普的一些言论。

他承诺波兰将继续支持乌克兰，但对泽连斯基持批评态度，指责他利用盟友。纳沃茨基指责乌克兰难民滥用波兰的慷慨，并誓言优先为波兰人提供医疗保健和教育等社会服务。

与此同时，纳沃茨基试图向特朗普强调，俄罗斯在乌克兰的侵略行为凸显了普京不可信赖，而美国在波兰的强大存在仍然是一项重要的威慑力量。

俄罗斯及其盟友白俄罗斯将于本月在白俄罗斯举行联合军事演习，这令波兰以及北约成员国拉脱维亚和立陶宛感到不安。

美联社驻柏林记者盖尔·穆尔森和康斯坦丁·托罗平对本报道亦有贡献。