Russia has called on Poland to reopen its border with Belarus, Moscow’s close ally, labeling the border closure as “destructive” and warning of potential consequences.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk had announced the closure of the border with Belarus from 00:00 on September 12, in response to joint military exercises between Moscow and Minsk.
“We call on Warsaw to consider the consequences of these destructive steps and to reconsider its decision as soon as possible,” said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova in a statement on September 11.
Zakharova added that the border closure is being implemented “to justify the policy of further escalation of tensions in Central Europe.”
Eastern NATO members, Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia, are on high alert due to the large-scale military exercises. Tusk stated that the drills are designed to simulate an invasion of the Suwałki Corridor, a strategically important area in Poland.
The Zapad military exercise usually takes place every four years, but this year marks the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine over three years ago. The exercises are scheduled to continue until September 16, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Belarus had initially announced in January that 13,000 troops would participate, but in May said the number would be halved.
Zakharova also claimed that Warsaw “demonstratively ignored” gestures of goodwill from Moscow and Minsk to move the exercises away from the Polish border and reduce the number of military personnel involved.
Additionally, the exercises come after Poland reported on Wednesday that it shot down up to four of 19 Russian drones that entered its airspace. Moscow subsequently stated that it was carrying out a large-scale attack in western Ukraine and had no plans to target any objectives within Poland.
