Poland to spend $2.5B to enhance border security with Russia, Belarus

By Necva Tastan

ISTANBUL (AA) - Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced on Saturday that his country will spend $2.5 billion to improve the security of the border it shares with Russia and Belarus.

Speaking at an event organized in connection with the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Monte Casino in the city of Cracow in southern Poland, Tusk stated that his country has started work on the “Shield-East” project, which aims to strengthen military checkpoints along the border with Russia and Belarus, according to the state-run PAP news agency.

"We have taken the decision to invest PLN 10 billion in our security and above all in a secure eastern border," Tusk said.

"We are embarking on a major project to build a secure border, including a system of fortifications, …to make this border impassable to a potential enemy," he added.

The previous government had built a wall on the border with Belarus at a cost of $400 million to stop the flow of illegal migrants stemming from the Russia-Ukraine war.

Tusk accused Belarus of exacerbating its “hybrid war” with the West by encouraging illegal migrants to cross into the EU through Poland.