Poland, Lithuania Bolster Defenses Amidst Joint Russian-Belarusian Military Drills
Warsaw and Vilnius are increasing military preparedness in response to planned joint exercises between Russia and Belarus, including potential nuclear weapons training, raising concerns about regional stability.
Poland has announced teh full closure of its border with Belarus, including railway crossings, citing escalating provocations from both Russia and Belarus. This decision follows the detention of a Polish religious figure in Belarus on espionage suspicions, as highlighted by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński stated the border will remain closed until assurances are made regarding the safety of Polish citizens.
Belarus’s Foreign Ministry has protested the border closure, calling it a measure that ”causes important problems” and accusing Poland of abusing its geographical location. Currently, only two border crossings between Poland and Belarus remain operational, having previously reduced most crossings.
The heightened tensions stem from long-standing strained relations between Poland, Lithuania, Minsk, and Moscow, exacerbated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Both Warsaw and vilnius have provided ample political, military, and humanitarian support to Ukraine.
Adding to the concerns, Belarusian Defense Minister Viktar Chrenin previously announced that Russian and Belarusian troops will practice planning for the use of nuclear weapons and Orešnik missiles during the West-2025 exercises. NATO, of which Poland and Lithuania are members, is planning counter-exercises on its side of the border in response.
The BBC Russian service notes that joint Russian-Belarusian military exercises in Febuary 2022 were used as cover for preparing Russian troops for deployment in Ukraine, fueling anxieties about the true intent of the upcoming West-2025 drills.
