Warsaw launches Safe Podlasie operation to beef up border security

July 31, Pozirk. Warsaw is launching the Safe Podlasie operation, Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz has announced.

As part of the operation, Warsaw will deploy 17,000 soldiers who will assist border guards and police forces, the Polish defense ministry said on X.

The hybrid war against Poland, as Warsaw describes the ongoing illegal migration crisis at the shared border with Belarus, has reached its highest intensity, with attacks registered in all areas, Kosiniak-Kamysz said.

The past few months proved the dangers that can arise at Poland’s eastern border, the official noted.

A buffer zone and better-equipped soldiers can contribute to deterrence and defense, he added.

The migration crisis at the Belarus-EU border started in spring 2021 after Alaksandar Łukašenka, angered by EU sanctions, had indicated that Minsk would not prevent migrants from Africa and Asia from using Belarus as a route to the EU.

Tensions on the border escalated this spring with the spike in illegal border crossings and attacks on Polish border guards by people trying to cross the border illegally. One of them resulted in the death of Polish soldier Mateusz Sitek, stabbed at the border with Belarus.

Belarus’ western neighbors call the migration crisis a “hybrid attack” orchestrated by Minsk and Moscow.

Also read: Poland to launch military operation to secure its border with Belarus