Poland to deploy 1,000 more troops to eastern border with Belarus

Defense Ministry decision comes as tensions mount along border, with Poland fearing replay of 2021 migration crisis and claiming Wagner Group troops are near frontier

By Ahmet Gencturk

ATHENS (AA) – Poland announced on Tuesday that it will deploy 1,000 more troops to the eastern border with Belarus, the scene of recent tension between the two countries.

Due to the dynamic situation across the border, and at the request of the border guards, the Defense Ministry decided to send additional troops, the ministry told the state-run PAP news agency.

On Monday, Poland’s Border Guard called for the deployment of 1,000 more troops to the border with Belarus amid mounting fears that Belarusian authorities could try to push migrants across the frontier in a repeat of the 2021 migration crisis, which saw hundreds of people trying to force their way into Poland.

Deputy Interior Minister Maciej Wasik also accused Belarus of orchestrating another migration influx into the European Union via the Polish border.

In the summer of 2021, tens of thousands of migrants and refugees crossed or attempted to cross into Poland from neighboring Belarus.

The alleged presence of the Wagner mercenary group near the border is also said to have added fuel to the situation. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said the move was aimed at destabilizing the situation on NATO’s eastern flank.

Kaynak:

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