Poland deploys 40,000 troops to borders with Belarus and Russia
Poland deploys 40,000 troops on borders with Belarus and Russia (photo: Getty Images)
Poland is deploying about 40,000 soldiers on the borders with Belarus and Russia amid rising tensions after the Russian drone attack on September 10, TVP World reported.
It is expected that tens of thousands of servicemen will take part in the periodic joint Russian-Belarusian exercises Zapad-2025. This prompted Poland to make the decision to deploy about 40,000 of its soldiers near the eastern border.
"Poland has been preparing for the Zapad 2025 maneuvers for many months. The Polish Army has conducted exercises in which over 30,000 Polish soldiers, as well as soldiers of the NATO alliance, took part in order to adequately respond. Let's remember that Zapad 2025 is an offensive exercise," said Polish Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk.
Drone attack on Poland
During the attack on Ukraine on the night of September 10, Russian drones entered Polish airspace.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated that a total of 19 Russian drones were recorded in the country's airspace. Most of them entered from the territory of Belarus. At the same time, four drones were shot down.
Debris of the downed drones was found in 11 settlements in Poland. One of them crashed on the territory of a Territorial Defense Forces unit.
According to the latest information, debris of 16 Russian drones that entered Polish territory during the attack has already been found in Poland. One of the drones fell on the territory of a military base, but it caused no damage.
In connection with the Russian attack, NATO invoked Article 4. This will allow member states to discuss the situation with allies in the North Atlantic Council.
The Russian Ministry of Defense, in response to statements by NATO countries, falsely claimed that the range of the drones that attacked Poland allegedly "does not exceed 700 kilometers" and stated that "no targets were planned on Polish territory."
However, according to an analyst, the Russians equipped Gerbera drones with additional fuel tanks, which increased their flight range. This enabled Russian drones to reach Poland.
According to media reports, Russia may have attempted to attack a NATO base on the territory of Poland. Some of the Russian drones were flying in its direction.
