Trump says US will send additional 5,000 troops to Poland

The United States will send an additional 5,000 troops to Poland, President Donald Trump announced Thursday.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump cited his close relationship with Poland's conservative nationalist president, Karol Nawrocki, as the reason for the troop increase.

The announcement comes just two days after Vice President JD Vance told reporters that a U.S. troop deployment to Poland had been delayed. The U.S. has been reviewing its military presence in Europe, with expectations that it might scale back following Trump’s calls for NATO to take a larger role in European defense.

"Based on the successful election of the now President of Poland, Karol Nawrocki, who I was proud to endorse, and our relationship with him, I am pleased to announce that the United States will be sending an additional 5,000 troops to Poland," Trump wrote.

Trump previously hosted Nawrocki at the White House in May last year and supported him at a critical moment ahead of the Polish election, in which Nawrocki defeated the candidate of Prime Minister Donald Tusk's pro-European, centrist party.

The two leaders met again at the White House in September, where Trump indicated that the U.S. could further increase its troop presence in Poland and pledged to strengthen the country’s defense.

-Reporting by Bhargav Acharya and Ismail Shakil; Editing by Ryan Patrick Jones and Caitlin Webber/Reuters