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Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk pledged to do more to strengthen security along its entire eastern frontier when he travelled to the border with Belarus on Saturday.
Tusk accused Belarus, Russia's ally, of intensifying what he called a “hybrid war” against the West by encouraging migrants to try to cross into the EU.
He vowed that Poland would spare no expense on its border security.
“I know that there are more and more illegal crossings every day,” Tusk told reporters at the border, where he met with Polish army soldiers, border guard officers and police.
He also cited “the growing threat resulting from the Russian-Ukrainian war, Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and the uncertain geopolitical situation.”
The visit to the border is Tusk's first since he took office in December and comes after a Polish judge defected to Belarus this month. Officials have denounced the judge as a traitor, and he is being investigated on suspicion of espionage.
Tusk considers his approach
Tusk took over from the Law and Justice or PiS party, known for its standoff with the European Union over rule of law issues. The previous party took a strong stance against migration, setting it at odds with other European allies when it first took power in 2015.
Since then, though, the general mood against migration across Europe has toughened.
While Tusk is more moderate over migration than some of his predecessors, he opposes unregulated migration.
During his visit, Tusk said: “This is not only Poland’s internal border, but also the border of the European Union. Therefore, I have no doubt that all of Europe will have to — and I know that we will achieve this — invest in its security by investing in Poland’s eastern border and in the security of our border.”
Poland's Prime Minister Donald Tusk listens to the media in Berlin, Germany, Friday, March 15, 2024. Ebrahim Noroozi/Copyright 2024 The AP. All rights reserved
The visit comes weeks before June's European elections and Tusk seemed intent on sending a message to voters that his political party, Civic Coalition, favours border security and supports the uniformed officers there.
“I came today primarily so that both commanders and their subordinates have no doubt that the Polish state and the Polish government are with them in every situation, here at the border," he said.
Can Europe help pro-democracy Belarusians as Lukashenko tightens grip on power? Lithuania rejects claim it launched drone attack against Belarus
In 2021, large numbers of migrants from the Middle East and Africa began arriving along the EU's eastern border with Belarus. The EU then accused Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko of encouraging the migration to destabilise the EU after it imposed sanctions on the country for an election widely viewed as fraudulent.
Poland's previous government responded to the crisis by constructing a tall steel wall.
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Indrek Jurt？enko is a trained opera singer. But today he takes me to a military manoeuvre in the Estonian forests. Armed civilians, part of the “Estonian Defence League” (EDL), are war-gaming together with professional soldiers: “In our exercise there are 500 people from Estonia, Lithuania and France participating”, he says.
The drill is called “Northern Frog” and takes place around a former soviet military airfield. Close to the landing strip, infantry troops from NATO-partner France fortify trenches. In the nearby forest, Baltic volunteers are gathering. They are armed civilians with professional military skills. It's quite an intriguing setting; Estonian milita forces and professional NATO-troops are mutually testing and upgrading their combat skills for trench warfare.
Local knowledge, local strength
From a French professional perspective, what is the advantage of such a militia force, I ask Captain Hubert. “They are operating in their own zone of living, in the region they belong to”, he tells me. “And that’s why they can react at once exactly when and where they are needed.”
Some 30,000 members signed up with the EDL. Workers, clerks, students or farmers spending their time off in military exercises; they receive no pay for this patriotic service. Many of them have their own weapon at home and they know how to handle it when things become serious.
To never ever again live under foreign rule, that’s Reet Saari motivation for joining. She’s a mother and sales manager at a hardware store. Today she leads a reconnaissance patrol – a heavily armed all-female combat unit. "Estonia is a small country, so everybody has to contribute to the defence efforts in one way or another. Some can fight at the frontline in the forest, like me. Others can help with support tasks and logistics.” In manoeuvres like this one Reet learnt shooting, battlefield medecin, infantry tactics and close combat.
Spend to defend
In the Estonian capital Tallinn I meet defence minister Hanno Pevkur. Estonia urges its NATO partners to increase their defence spending. Two percent of GDP is not enough, Pevkur insists: “The main threat will remain Russia. The dictatorship will grow”, he says on record.
In this context the Estonian Parliament voted to keep defence expenditure at three percent of GDP. This year it could be even more. What are the priorities for 2024-2027, I ask the Defence Minister. Pevkur: “We are buying self-propelled howitzers on wheels, new medium range air defence, a lot of anti-tank systems and a lot of new ammunitions. In the last two years we have bought more ammunition as we have bought in the past 30 years in total!”
Estonia is exposed to Russian destabilisation efforts through airspace violations, fake-news-campaigns, cyber-attacks and GPS signal jammings. Is Estonia really at risk, I ask former EDL commander Riho ühtegi, who has also a background with Estonian special forces and intelligence. NATO membership is a solid safeguard, he knows, but “this empire feeling, it's not gone from Russia, they still have it. So, because of that, we must be ready”, ühtegi warns.
All for one, one for all
NATO officers are full of praise for the fully-trained civilians in the Baltics. The militia fighters are able to improvise and to find solutions for bad surprises even in the midst of stressful combat situations, they say. Chains of command are working well, reconnaissance and communication flows are professional, I get told in a few background details on the ground.
Some voices from Ukraine are sending alarming signals: The Baltic States could be next on Putin's list, they say. However, article 5 of the NATO treaty guarantees to come to the aid of any member if it is attacked; one for all, all for one. An evocation shared by Indrek Jurt？enko, Reet Saari, Hanno Pevkur, Riho ühtegi, Captain Hubert and many other people living in the western defence alliance.
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Russia has been pounding Ukraine's Kharkiv region with dozens of strikes since Saturday.
Several residential buildings were destroyed or damaged, and the body of one person was found under the rubble.
Heavy fighting has been mounting since Saturday following Russia's sudden incursion in the Vovchansk area.
Over 5,000 residents have already been evacuated to safer areas.
Vovchansk city military administration head Tamaz Gambarashvili said local authorities would aim to "completely evacuate the population within one or two days".
"There were small (Russian) groups that tried to enter the city streets, but the armed forces cut off these attempts", he added.
‘If the Russians go through Ukraine, do you think they won't go to Europe?’ - on Odesa’s front line Russia bombards border city as major assault on Ukraine continues
In his Sunday address, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the city is "under constant Russian fire", describing the situation as "extremely difficult".
On the same day, Ukraine hit back with a massive shelling on Belgorod, partially destroying a residential building and killing at least 15 people.
The Belgorod region, on Russia's western border, has also been the target of a large number of strikes.