US ambassador questions troop presence in Poland after official says Trump doesn't deserve Nobel Prize
U.S. Ambassador to Poland Tom Rose said on Feb.5 that he has suspended all official contact with Wlodzimierz Czarzasty, the speaker of the Polish parliament's lower house, citing what he described as "outrageous and unprovoked insults" directed at U.S. President Donald Trump.
The dispute erupted after Czarzasty rejected efforts to back Trump's Nobel Peace Prize bid and accused him of disrespecting Poland by criticizing NATO allies in December for insufficient support during the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan.
"Effective immediately, we will have no further dealings, contacts, or communications with Marshal of the Sejm Czarzasty," Rose wrote on X. "We will not permit anyone to harm U.S.–Polish relations, nor disrespect President Donald Trump."
The dispute escalated after the U.S. ambassador, a former right-wing broadcaster, appeared to question the U.S. military presence in Poland, one of Washington's closest European allies.
Rose responded from his personal X account to a critic who suggested Poland could handle its "enemies" alone, writing: "Should we take all our soldiers and equipment with us?"
The row quickly drew reactions from Polish political leaders.
"Mr. Ambassador Rose, allies should respect, not lecture, each other," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on X. "At least this is how we here in Poland understand partnership."
Rose replied that Tusk's criticism should have been directed at Czarzasty, again condemning the speaker's comments as "despicable, disrespectful, and insulting" toward Trump.
Czarzasty later said on X that he regretted the ambassador's reaction but did not retract his criticism, saying he stood by his position on the underlying issues.
Poland has been among the United States' closest allies in Europe since the 1990s.
Security cooperation has deepened further since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, with the U.S. maintaining a significant military presence in Poland, including rotational combat brigades as part of NATO's deterrence posture on the alliance's eastern flank.
Trump earlier said he does not plan to withdraw U.S. troops from Poland, signaling support for Poland's new President, Karol Nawrocki, who is widely viewed as more aligned with Washington.
