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A6 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 19 February 2025

Polish president says U.S. assures him it won’t reduce troop levels

as he revives ‘Fort Trump’ idea

By VANESSA GERA whom he hosted in Warsaw
Associated Press last week.
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Duda said Hegseth told
Poland’s President Andrzej him “that we can rather ex-
Duda said Tuesday that he pect a strengthening of the
has received U.S. assuranc- American presence here.
es that Washington will not We even talked about the
reduce its troop presence fact that I hope that Fort
in Poland and elsewhere Trump, which we talked
along NATO’s eastern flank. about during the first term
A conservative who has of President Donald Trump,
long had good ties with U.S. will really be established.”
President Donald Trump, Fort Trump was a Polish
Duda also returned to an proposal for a permanent
idea he proposed years U.S. base in Poland, which
ago to create a U.S. military Duda spoke of publicly
based called “Fort Trump” during a visit to the White
in his country. House in 2018. The base
The Trump administration was never created.
has not announced any Polish officials hope to pre-
plans to pull forces out of serve the U.S. commitment
the region, but has said Eu- to NATO and its longstand-
rope must do more to pro- ing commitment to security
vide for its own security. His Poland’s President Andrzej Duda, left, greets U.S. envoy to Ukraine, Keith Kellog , right, ahead in the region, with fears of
administration’s stance has of talks on steps being taken to end the war in Ukraine, across Poland’s eastern border, at the Russia growing.
raised questions in the re- Presidential Palace in Warsaw, Poland, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025. They are convinced that
gion about whether Wash- Associated Press Warsaw’s strong alliance
ington will maintain its long- with the U.S. and its high
standing commitments to Gen. Keith Kellogg, the U.S. ending the war in Ukraine. ment and created a long- level of spending on de-
NATO partners. special envoy for Ukraine I know President Donald term presence there after fense will help its cause.
“There are no concerns and Russia. Trump, I know that he is an Russia’s full-scale invasion They also hope that their
that the U.S. would reduce “On the contrary, I hope extremely decisive man of Ukraine in 2022. position will allow it to ad-
the level of its presence in that thanks to the efforts and when he acts, he acts There are now about 10,000 vocate for Ukraine.
our country, that the U.S. that President Trump is cur- in a very determined and U.S. troops based in Poland. “We have told both the
would in any way withdraw rently making, the war in usually effective way,” Duda said his assessment Secretary of Defense and
from its responsibility or co- Ukraine will end.” Duda said. was based on conversa- General Kellogg clearly
responsibility for the secu- “I will say that in my per- The U.S. deployed troops tions he had in recent days, and distinctly that it is obvi-
rity of this part of Europe,” sonal opinion, America has to Poland after Russia’s an- both with Kellogg on Tues- ous to us that this war can-
Duda told reporters in War- entered the game very nexation of Crimea in 2014, day and with U.S. Defense not end in a victory for Rus-
saw after a meeting with strongly when it comes to but increased the deploy- Secretary Pete Hegseth, sia,” Duda said.q

Brazil to join OPEC+, group of major oil-exporting nations

By FABIANO MAISONNAVE naling the country’s evolu- came in response to an try will not participate in vironmental regulator to
Associated Press tion into a major oil state official invitation in 2023. decisions. approve exploratory drill-
BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — just nine months ahead of The group includes the Silveira called the charter ing near the mouth of the
Brazil’s government on hosting the United Nations’ 12 members of OPEC, the merely “a forum for discuss- Amazon River, one of the
Tuesday approved joining annual climate summit. longstanding group set up ing strategies among oil- most biodiverse regions of
OPEC+, a group of major The National Council for to coordinate oil produc- producing countries. We the world.
oil-exporting nations, sig- Energy Policy’s approval tion to stabilize markets, should not be ashamed of Brazil is the world’s seventh-
plus 10 more significant being oil producers. Brazil largest oil producer, with
oil-producing nations with needs to grow, develop about 4.3 million barrels
Russia by far the largest. and create income and daily, or 4% of the world´s
Though non-OPEC mem- jobs.” output, according to En-
bers agree to cooperate President Luiz Inácio Lula ergy Information Adminis-
with OPEC nations, Brazil da Silva began his third tration, a U.S. government
won’t have any binding term in 2023 touting him- agency.
obligation such as produc- self as an environmental In 2024, crude oil became
tion cuts, Mines and Energy defender, and has worked the country´s top export
Minister Alexandre Silveira to reduce deforestation product, accounting for
said at a news confer- in the Amazon rainforest 13.3% of Brazil’s foreign
ence. The participation will and to protect Indigenous sales, surpassing soy.
be limited to the Charter rights. But he has also ar- The U..S. is the world’s larg-
of Cooperation, a perma- gued that new oil revenues est producer at nearly 22
Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during the nent forum for OPEC and could finance a transition million barrels daily, with
inauguration ceremony for the new president of the state- OPEC+ countries to discuss to green energy. Saudi Arabia, the larg-
run oil company Petrobras, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, June 19, industry-related issues. In recent weeks, he has est producer in OPEC, at
2024. The South American coun- pressed the country’s en- about 11 million barrels.q
Associated Press