Poland Says in Talks with U.S. on Storing Heavy Weapons

Poland said on Sunday it is in talks with the United States on the possibility of Washington storing heavy weaponry on Polish soil, as regional tensions run high over Russia and the conflict in Ukraine.

Defense Minister Tomasz Siemoniak said the negotiations were part of discussions on increasing the American military presence in Poland and other eastern European members of NATO.

His comments followed a report in the New York Times on Saturday that said the Pentagon was poised to store battle tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and other heavy weapons for as many as 5,000 American troops in several Baltic and eastern European countries.

The paper described it as a "significant move to deter possible Russian aggression in Europe" and said the plan, if approved, would represent the first time since the Cold War that the U.S. has stationed such equipment in NATO members that were once under Soviet sway.

Siemoniak confirmed in an interview with the PAP news agency that Poland was holding such talks with the United States, adding that he had discussed the issue with U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter during his visit to Washington in May.

"We have been working for a while on increasing the American military presence in Poland and across the eastern flank of NATO," the minister said. 

"It's relatively easy to transfer troops, but it will be good to have material close to the danger zones," he said, adding that he had been informed Washington would make a decision shortly.

Senior officials cited in the Times said the project could be approved by the Pentagon before the June 24-25 meeting of NATO defense ministers.

Poland and other countries in eastern Europe have been rattled by Russia's actions in Ukraine, where pro-Moscow separatists have been fighting Kiev's forces since April 2014.