“We are facing an increasing number of provocations from the East. Therefore, on the night from Thursday to Friday, we will close the border with Belarus,” Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced today during the meeting of the Council of Ministers.
On September 12, the Russian-Belarusian Zapad-25 maneuvers are set to begin, lasting until September 16. According to the declarations of the Ministries of Defense of Russia and Belarus, around 13,000 soldiers are expected to take part, although Western intelligence services believe this number may be higher. The exercises pose a risk of provocations and other hybrid actions against neighboring NATO member states.
Provocations against Poland have already been taking place for some time in its airspace, where foreign drones have been spotted. Disturbing reports reach the public almost daily. Added to this are activities in the infosphere, as well as cyberattacks.
“We are facing an increasing number of provocations from the East. Therefore, on the night from Thursday to Friday, we will close the border with Belarus,” Donald Tusk stated today during the government meeting.
All road and rail border crossings will be closed. In 2021, Poland closed the Kuźnica Białostocka-Bruzgi border crossing, and in 2023 – the Bobrowniki-Bierestovitsa crossing. Currently, two road crossings remain open: Terespol-Brest (for passenger traffic) and Kukuryki-Kozlovichi (for freight traffic). Two rail crossings remain operational – Terespol-Brest and Kuźnica-Grodno.