Gen. Christopher LaNeve told the House of Representatives on Friday that canceling a planned armored brigade deployment to Poland was the most sensible way to reduce U.S. forces in Europe. He was answering questions about the decision to cancel the rotation of the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team from the 1st Cavalry Division.

The brigade was expected to send more than 4,000 soldiers and equipment to Poland, a move that had already drawn attention because it came after the Pentagon announced the withdrawal of 5,000 U.S. soldiers from Germany. LaNeve said the Army would keep working closely with Gen. Alexus Grynkewich and his team to make sure the right forces were available.

The cancellation is part of a broader adjustment of the U.S. military presence in Europe, and a NATO official told Wirtualna Polska that the United States is working to adapt that presence. The planned deployment had been presented as a rotational move, but LaNeve said it was linked to instructions on reducing force levels and that, after close consultation, not sending the brigade was the most sensible option.

The decision quickly became a political flashpoint on Capitol Hill. Democratic Rep. Joe Courtney called it a bad signal for allies and adversaries, arguing that opponents were paying attention and that Poland was a strong ally spending 4.8 percent of GDP on defense. He added that the combined effect of the Poland cancellation and the removal of 5,000 troops from Germany sent, in his view, an awful message.

That criticism underscored the friction inside the administration’s effort to trim its footprint without shaking allied confidence. The Army is now being asked to explain not just where its forces are going, but what message those moves send across stany zjednoczone and Europe at a moment when every shift in posture is being watched closely.