Poland deploys 1,000 troops along eastern border

Poland has begun deploying over 1,000 troops on its eastern border, claiming concerns over the presence of Russian Wagner fighters in neighboring Belarus.

"Over 1,000 soldiers and almost 200 units of equipment from the 12th and 17th Mechanized Brigades are starting to move to the east of the country," Poland's Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak declared in a Twitter post on Saturday.

"This is a demonstration of our readiness to respond to attempts at destabilization near the border of our country," Blaszczak proclaimed.

Although the military official made no mention of Wagner fighters, Western media outlets tied the announcement to the reported presence of some militants tied to the group in neighboring Belarus, adding that last week Poland announced it would send 500 police to shore up security at its border with Belarus.

Poland has also claimed seeing an increase in the number of refugees trying to cross the Belarus border in recent weeks, saying that over 200 people tried to cross illegally in recent days, including citizens of Morocco, India and Ethiopia.

According to the reports, Warsaw has accused Belarus of artificially creating a refugee crisis on the border since 2021 "by flying in people from West Asia and Africa and attempting to push them across the frontier."

The development comes more than a week after Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki declared that  the country is seeking to host NATO nuclear weapons in Poland within the framework of the Nuclear Sharing program to counter the “threat” they claim Russia poses.

Morawiecki said on June 30 that the request came in response to Russia’s deployment of strategic nuclear weapons to neighboring Belarus.

“The final decision will depend on our American and NATO partners. We declare our will to act quickly in this matter,” Morawiecki added.

ME