Poland, Baltics will shut Belarus border if 'critical incident' occurs -minister

Poland and the Baltic states will shut down their borders with Belarus completely in the event of a “critical incident” involving Wagner mercenaries, according to Mariusz Kaminski, Poland’s Interior Minister, on Monday.

Concerns over border security have been growing among Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland, all members of the European Union, as they share borders with Belarus. The worries escalated when hundreds of battle-hardened Wagner mercenaries from Russia arrived in Belarus, at the invitation of President Alexander Lukashenko.

Poland has also witnessed an increase in the number of migrants, primarily from the Middle East and Africa, attempting to cross the border in recent months. It has accused Belarus of facilitating this influx.

Marian Kaminski asserted during a press conference, “We demand that the authorities in Minsk immediately expel the Wagner Group from Belarusian territory and send the illegal migrants back to their home countries.”

Kaminski stated, “If there are any critical incidents, regardless of whether they occur at the Polish or Lithuanian border, we will immediately respond. All previously opened border crossings will be closed.”

The reporters covering this story are Alan Charlish, Pawel Florkiewicz, and Marek Strzelecki. Conor Humphries performed the editing process.