Poland is stepping up security at its border with Belarus as tensions at its eastern border may intensify on Monday as hundreds of migrants gathering at the Belarusian side are expected to try to enter the European Union country in one group, according to Bloomberg.
“We’re now seeing the largest attempt of mass forced entry into Poland,” Stanislaw Zaryn, the spokesman for the country’s secret services chief, said on Twitter.
So far, Poland has seen about 30,000 people attempt to illegally enter the country from Belarus, including 17,300 in October alone.
The government in Warsaw has erected a barbed-wire fence on the border with its eastern neighbour, declared a state of emergency and sent thousands of troops to patrol the area.
Lithuania, Latvia, Poland and Germany have accused Belarus of organizing flights for migrants from central Asia and helping them cross the border in a “hybrid attack” against the EU.
Warsaw and the EU say it’s an organized action by the Belarusian government aimed at destabilizing the bloc in retaliation for Western sanctions, according to AP News.
Poland’s Border Guard has reported incidents of hostile behaviour and threats by Belarusian forces directed across the border at Polish forces.