U.S. and Polish military and civic leaders stand on stage during Freedom Fest at Poznan Airport on Friday, July 4, 2026, celebrating America’s 250th birthday. The event drew thousands of attendees and highlighted the growing partnership between the United States and Poland. (Facebook)
POZNAN, Poland — Thousands of Americans and Poles gathered Friday in western Poland to celebrate America’s 250th birthday, highlighting the growing relationship between the two countries even as questions remain about the size and shape of the U.S. military presence here.
Hosted by U.S. Army Garrison Poland, Freedom Fest at Poznan Airport featured live music, military displays and fireworks, drawing about 6,500 attendees. Organizers said the event reflects the growing relationship between U.S. troops stationed in Poland and the local communities that host them.
“Part of having a home is a place to grow, thrive, train, fight, but also celebrate. That’s what we’re doing today,” said Marcus Fichtl, a spokesman for U.S. Army Garrison Poland.
Poland has hosted about 10,000 U.S. troops in recent years, mostly on rotational deployments. Polish officials want to expand that force to as many as 15,000 troops and establish a more permanent garrison presence with the infrastructure to support U.S. military families.
“I think it’s great to have U.S. troops in Poland,” said Bartosz Prociuk, a former member of the Polish military who lives in Poznan and attended the festival. “We are allies, and I think it is reassurance. It shows the support.”
Prociuk, who attended the festival to experience American food, culture and military displays, said he would welcome a permanent U.S. presence near Poznan.
The celebration was the first Freedom Fest held in Poznan after two years in Powidz, where the event began as a community celebration between U.S. soldiers and local residents. This year’s move comes as U.S. Army Garrison Poland continues to expand its presence in Poznan, which serves as the headquarters for the garrison and Camp Kościuszko.
The Representative Artistic Ensemble of the Polish Armed Forces perform a medley of songs during Freedom Fest at Poznan, Poland, July 3, 2026. (Sgt. Shaun Rajasekar/U.S. Army)
Organizers said bringing the event into the city instead of hosting it on a military installation was an intentional effort to strengthen ties with the local community.
For many Polish attendees, the celebration offered an opportunity to experience American culture while reinforcing the close relationship between the two NATO allies.
“We must know each other — the culture, the language,” said Ewelina Budzinska, who attended the event with family and friends after seeing it advertised online. “This is good for your country and my country.”
Lukasz Szkodlinski, who lives near Krzesiny Air Base, said he regularly encounters American service members in the community, including at local businesses.
“The military is not something weird for us,” Szkodlinski said, adding that events like Freedom Fest give Americans and Poles an opportunity to learn about each other’s cultures.
The celebration also highlighted the long history between the United States and Poland. Camp Kosciuszko, home to U.S. Army Garrison Poland and V Corps’ forward headquarters, is named for Polish military engineer Tadeusz Kosciuszko, who fought alongside American forces during the Revolutionary War.
Fichtl said that history continues to shape the relationship between the two countries.
“We weren’t birthed as a nation alone,” he said. “It wasn’t just Americans fighting. It was Polish heroes like Thaddeus Kosciuszko, which our base is named after, or Casimir Pulaski.”
Pulaski, a Warsaw-born commander who also fought in the Revolutionary War, is often called the father of the American cavalry.
But the celebration also came during a period of mixed messages about U.S. troop levels in Europe and Poland.
In May, the U.S. Defense Department announced plans to withdraw about 5,000 troops from Germany. It later emerged that most of those troops had already been slated for a nine-month deployment to Poland.
Following an outcry in Warsaw, U.S. President Donald Trump said he would send an additional 5,000 troops to Poland, though the Pentagon has yet to explain how it would carry out that directive.
As questions continue about the size and shape of the U.S. military presence in Europe and Poland, Fichtl said the garrison’s mission remains unchanged.
“The word ‘garrison’ means permanent,” he said. “We’re here permanently. We’re setting the conditions for families, and I think events like this reassure our friends here in Poland that America’s here to stay. One of the best ways of showing that you’re going to stay is by celebrating together.”
