US Vice President JD Vance said on Monday that a planned deployment of 4,000 US troops to Poland has been postponed, not cancelled, and called for greater European autonomy in defence matters.
Last week, US officials suggested that the deployment had been cancelled as part of Donald Trump's reassessment of the US military presence in NATO countries.
"More sovereignty is needed and Europe must stand on its own two feet. That remains our strategy in Europe," Vance said at a press conference.
JD Vance:
We have not reduced the troop levels in Poland by 4,000 troops. We delayed a troop deployment that was going to go to Poland.
That's not a reduction; that's a standard delay in rotation. pic.twitter.com/3wighvIL3k
- Clash Report (@clashreport) May 19, 2026
Asked about the deployment of 4,000 US troops, he replied: "There is a delay in redeploying troops. These troops could go elsewhere in Europe."
"We have not yet made a final decision on where these troops will go," explained the American vice president, who has repeatedly criticized the governments of several European countries, especially for their immigration policies.
The movements of US military forces have come under the spotlight after US President Donald Trump vowed to punish some of his European allies who did not support his military operations against Iran.
The Pentagon has already announced the withdrawal of 53,000 US troops from Germany.
