President ratifies Polish-US defence cooperation agreement
President Andrzej Duda on Monday ratified the Poland – United States Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement during a ceremony held at the Presidential Palace in Warsaw.
President Duda said the agreement provides for a further increase in the number of US troops stationed in Poland and the establishment of a new legal framework for the presence of US soldiers in Poland.
Andrzej Duda said that above all the agreement is a guarantee of security for Poland and for this part of Europe. "Everyone who is familiar with politics knows perfectly well that the conclusion of this agreement will not only bring military effects, it not only translates into the US military presence - personnel and infrastructure (...) - It is primarily a guarantee of security. for Poland and for the whole of this part of Europe," said the president.
Andrzej Duda said the agreement also translates into the development of economic and business cooperation. "As a result, the Central European market is becoming a much safer and more stable market for US investors," said Andrzej Duda.
During the ratification ceremony the president, noting that the last days and weeks were a hot time in US politics, said he would want today's ratification "to be a symbol of contemporary Polish-US relations, calm, independent of all political storms and political processes."
"Building Polish-US relations as a community of well-understood interests that benefit both countries is completely above current political events," said Andrzej Duda.
He went on to say that "while carrying out our tasks in the field of Polish-US relations as well as Poland's international policy, we act calmly, also ratifying this agreement, waiting for the newly elected president of the United States to take the oath before the nation."
The president added that he ratified the document without any doubt that both he and the US president would spare no effort "to ensure that international relations - ours (bilateral - PAP) and within the framework of the North Atlantic Alliance in the future develop in the best possible way."
The agreement was signed by Polish Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Warsaw on August 15, 2020.
The Polish-US agreement on enhanced defence cooperation complements last year's declarations by the presidents of both countries to increase the number of US personnel from 4,500 by at least a further 1,000.
Thanks to the military infrastructure, which, according to the agreement, will be prepared by Poland, it will be possible, in the event of a possible threat, to immediately deploy additional forces to Poland, ensuring a total presence of up to 20,000 US soldiers.
Before the ratification, Poland and the US announced that Poland would host the forward command of the 5th US Army Corps, a unit responsible for commanding the US military on the eastern flank of the North Atlantic Alliance.
Source: PAP
