“Can’t choose neighbors”
Lukashenko seeks talks with the Polish government
08/11/2023, 5:40 p.m
Several countries are strengthening their border protection towards Belarus. Alexander Lukashenko sees the increased military presence as a provocation. The Belarusian ruler now wants to get in touch with Poland.
Amid rising tensions with Poland, Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko has announced that he wants to establish contact with Warsaw. “We have to talk to the Poles. I have instructed the prime minister to contact them,” Lukashenko said, according to the state news agency Belta. Both countries are neighbors and “you can’t choose your neighbors,” he added.
Relations between Minsk and Warsaw are currently at a low point. On Thursday, the Polish government announced that it would send thousands of additional soldiers – a total of 10,000 – to the eastern border with Belarus as a “deterrent”. The Belarusian ruler said that Poland wanted to “escalate the situation”. Before the upcoming parliamentary elections in October, the government in Warsaw wants to show that the country is sufficiently armed.
NATO member Poland has repeatedly warned of a threat from Belarusian “provocations” and of dangers posed by the mercenaries of the Russian Wagner Group who are now based there. Warsaw also accuses Belarus and Russia of increasingly organizing border crossings for migrants into the European Union in order to destabilize the region.
Lithuania has also strengthened its forces and protective measures on the border with Belarus. The country shares a nearly 420-mile border with Russia’s close ally. Like Poland, the Baltic state is concerned about the activities of Wagner’s private army. The situation is also tense because migrants from crisis areas want to get to Lithuania, which the Belarusian authorities tolerate or even encourage.