Poland Deploying 10,000 Troops In The East, Considers Closing Border With Belarus
The rising threat on the Polish-Belarus border is an issue for the national security of Poland. For almost two years now Poland states that Minsk has tried to spark fear and uncertainty through unconventional operations on the border. In recent weeks the intensity of provocations, including the deployment of the Wagner Group to Belarus and a sharp rise in illegal border crossing attempts, forced Polish authorities to undertake more radical actions.
The most significant provocations took place between late July and early August, with the deployment of elements of Wagner Group closer to the Polish border and the intrusion of Belarusian military Mi-8 and Mi-24 over the Polish airspace.
Chief of the Polish Border Guards Gen. Tomasz Praga asked last weekend for the deployment of additional 1,000 soldiers to the border to stabilize the situation. In recent days Mariusz Blaszczak, Polish Minister of Defense, stated in an interview with Channel 1 of Polskie Radio, that Poland is considering closing its border with Belarus and rising the number of troops up to 10,000. In the interview Blaszczak said:
“The presence [of the armed forces] will be similar to that of 2021 when the first attack [on the Polish border] took place, so it is going to be an estimated 10,000 troops […] 4,000 soldiers will be directly involved in the operation of supporting Polish Border Guards while 6,000 will remain in reserve.”
According to the information provided by the Polish MoD, the deployment of additional forces to the border region is already underway. Back in early July elements of the 12th Mechanized Brigade and 17th Mechanized Brigade were rapidly deployed to the Podlasie region as part of Operation Safe Podlasie (pol. Operacja “Bezpieczne Podlasie”) as temporary support in response to the reported presence of the Wagner Group.
“If the agressor (sic!) decides for another provocations of this type, they will recieve a response,” Blaszczak said “but it has to be done sensibly. Nobody wants a war to spark.”
With regards to the wholesale closing of the border Blaszczak told Polskie Radio that such an option is being discussed in case of further escalation by Minsk.
Cover Photo: Soldiers of 12th Mechanized Brigade equipped with Piorun MANPADS on the Polish-Belarus border, courtesy: Armed Forces General Command (Poland)