An American battalion will arrive in Poland in April 2017, as part of a NATO expansion in the region, general Ben Hodges, the head of the US Army in Europe, said on Monday.

An addition armoured brigade will be placed on a rotating basis as early as February, Hodges added.

General Hodges and US Ambassador to Poland, Paul W. Jones, were in Warsaw on Monday watching the parade to mark Polish Armed Forces Day.

Among the participants were a sub-unit of American infantry and several Abrams tanks and Bradley armoured infantry vehicles.

“This is a symbol of the kind of presence that the United States will have in Poland following the decision of the NATO summit and bilateral agreements,” the US ambassador told journalists on Monday. “What people saw at the parade, they will see throughout the country next year.”

In May, Polish Defence Minister Antoni Macierewicz confirmed that NATO will station four battalions in Poland and the Baltics, following a meeting with the military alliance's Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. (rg)