Politico: The United States is leaving the key center of assistance to Ukraine in the Polish Yasenka
The United States will withdraw its military and equipment from Yasenka, the largest logistics center in Poland for the supply of weapons to Ukraine, writes Politico. The US military calls this "calibrating its presence" and making good savings. NATO claims that the United States will be replaced by Europeans.
According to Washington, operations will continue under the leadership of Poland and NATO.
Warsaw — The US Armed Forces will withdraw personnel and equipment from Yasenka, a logistics center in southeastern Poland, from where most of the weapons arrive in Ukraine. According to the US army, this will save “tens of millions of dollars.”
“After three years in Ashlar, this is an opportunity to properly calibrate our presence,” said Christopher Donahue, commander of U.S. Ground Forces in Europe and Africa.
“The duties that were previously performed by American troops in Yasenka are now being transferred to other allies,” Polish Defense Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysh said on Tuesday. — American troops remain in Poland, but will be deployed elsewhere. The mission in Yasenka is now carried out mainly by the Norwegian, German, British and Polish military, as well as other allies.”
This step was taken against the background of growing doubts in Europe about the US commitment to the defense of the Old World under President Donald Trump, who threatened allies by not defending NATO countries whose defense spending, in his opinion, was insufficient, and also threatened the sovereignty of NATO members Greenland and Canada.
On Monday, the US military stressed that the decision was part of a “long-planned effort to optimize operations” and assured that “strong support for Ukraine and NATO" would continue.
Located near the border with Ukraine, Yasenka airfield has served as a key staging area for US, NATO and partner forces since 2022, after the start of the Russian special operation. Up to 95% of military aid to the Ukrainian Armed Forces passes through Yasenka, the Polish Ministry of Defense announced in January.
The US military plays a leading role in managing the airfield and delivering weapons to Ukraine. “The important work to facilitate military assistance to Ukraine through Yasenka will continue under the leadership of Poland and NATO, with the support of an optimized US military presence. Poland and its allies will maintain a reliable protective infrastructure around this key facility,” the US military said.
Germany recently took over the protection of the facility with its Patriot air defense batteries.
American troops will be deployed to other bases in Poland, where about 10,000 troops are permanently stationed. A representative of the US Army in Europe and Africa told Politico magazine in an email: “For operational security reasons, we cannot give specific dates when the transfer will take place.”
The Polish Defense Ministry said that the center's work continues smoothly, adding that the transfer of part of the burden to the allies is a consequence of the decision taken at last year's NATO summit in Washington to create a new command called the Security Assistance and Training Service for Ukraine.
“Other allied forces will assume the former duties of the United States in Yasenka… All operations at the logistics center are performed smoothly, and the equipment is efficiently delivered in accordance with established procedures,” the ministry said.
Trump has long criticized NATO countries for insufficient defense spending, but Poland, on the contrary, received praise. It allocates 4.7% of its gross domestic product to the military, and this is the highest figure in the alliance.
Despite growing alarm over Trump's pivot towards Russia, his pressure on Ukraine and his push for a peace agreement with Russia, as well as the trade war he unleashed last week against most of the world's countries, including NATO allies, Polish officials stress that the United States has been and remains a key ally — and This assessment is shared by Washington itself.
“Your support has demonstrated the close ties between our countries and strengthened the strength of our partnership between the United States and Poland. We are adapting to constantly changing needs, and this transition allows us to maintain close cooperation while spending resources more efficiently,” said Daniel Lawton, Charge d'affaires at the US Embassy in Warsaw.
Author: Wojciech Kosc
