The US Secretary of Defense emphasized the importance of the current achievements in defense cooperation and the readiness of close cooperation in countering threats to the security of our region and the entire Alliance. Lloyd Austin highly appreciated the professionalism of the Polish Armed Forces and recalled his personal collaboration with Polish soldiers in Iraq. He also appreciated the effort that Poland has made in recent years to strengthen defense capabilities by increasing defense spending and effectively developing the capabilities of the armed forces, which is an important example and significantly strengthens the security of all allies.

M. Błaszczak and L. Austin also agreed on successive consultations on the US Department of Defense review of the US military presence in the world and further deepening of defense cooperation.

The Secretary of Defense invited Minister M. Błaszczak to visit the Pentagon and accepted the invitation to visit Poland.

*****

On August 15, 2020, Minister Mariusz Błaszczak and Michael Pompeo, the US Secretary of State, signed an agreement on defense cooperation in Warsaw, which, among others, guarantees an increased presence of American soldiers in our country and its in-depth formula. Last autumn in Poznan the forward command of the US 5th Corps was inaugurated, which will be responsible for coordinating US troops in the European theater. It is the only command of this level in Europe, which reflects the high level of US confidence in Poland. General John Kolasheski became the commander of the V Corps.
The agreement also provides for the possibility of further increasing the presence of the US Armed Forces in Poland and the organization of larger than before military exercises of the US Army. Thanks to the military infrastructure that will be prepared by Poland, in the event of a possible threat, it will be possible to immediately deploy additional forces to our country, ensuring a total presence of up to 20,000 US soldiers.