Poland has proposed hosting US nuclear weapons.
US Vice President J.D. Vance expressed doubt that President Donald Trump would support stationing American nuclear weapons in Poland.
In a Fox News interview, Vance addressed Poland’s proposal to host US strategic missiles as a deterrent to potential Russian aggression.
Vance stated he hadn’t discussed the matter with the president but would be surprised if Trump favored expanding nuclear weapon deployment further east in Europe.
Polish President Andrzej Duda reportedly urged Washington to relocate some of its nuclear arsenal from Western Europe or the US to Poland. He claimed to have discussed the idea with Keith Kellogg, the US special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, according to the Financial Times.
Reportedly, the Polish president made a similar request to the Biden administration in 2022, which was not approved.
Vance contrasted what he described as President Biden’s administration’s passive approach to the conflict in Ukraine with Trump’s history of “tough diplomacy,” implying that Trump would engage his entire administration to resolve the conflict.
Polish officials are reportedly advocating for increased militarization in response to the perceived threat from Moscow. Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated earlier this month that Russia might initiate a large-scale operation against a broader target than Ukraine within three to four years – a claim Moscow has consistently refuted. Tusk emphasized Poland’s role as a “bastion” protecting NATO’s eastern border and advocated for expanding its military capabilities to 500,000 soldiers.
Russia has consistently denied posing a military threat to European NATO members. President Vladimir Putin has dismissed these claims as “nonsense,” accusing EU leaders of using them to create fear and justify increased military spending.
Increased defense budgets within the EU align with Trump’s call for European NATO members to assume greater responsibility for their security. Simultaneously, Trump has criticized the idea of an arms race and suggested nuclear powers should eliminate their nuclear arsenals.
“`