Poland deploys about 40,000 soldiers at the country's borders with Belarus and Russia amid heightened tensions following the drone incursion into the country on September 10, the publication reports TVP.
Tens of thousands of troops are expected to take part in the periodic joint Russian-Belarusian exercises called"West 2025," prompting Poland to decide to deploy "around 40,000" of its own soldiers near its eastern border.
"Poland has been preparing for the Zapad 2025 maneuvers for many months," Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk said in an interview with Polsat News.
According to him, the Polish army conducted exercises involving more than 30,000 Polish soldiers, as well as NATO soldiers, in order to respond adequately.
"Let's remember that Zapad-2025 is a strategic exercise," Tomchyk noted.
Tomczyk echoed the fears of other political leaders that the exercises could be a harbinger of Russian aggression against NATO and EU countries.
Russian drone attack on Poland: latest news
As UNIAN previously reported, the incursion of Russian drones into Poland has once again raised security concerns due to vulnerability of civil air transport in Europe. Aviation analysts say airlines are increasingly wary of the risks associated with intrusions into civilian airspace. After the drone incident, airlines may reconsider their risk assessments in Poland, said Matthew Bory, chief intelligence officer at aviation risk consultancy Osprey Flight Solutions. He said they could consider flying from western Poland, away from the borders with Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, operating during daylight hours and carrying extra fuel to overcome potential diversions, similar to measures taken in the Middle East.
We also wrote that the BILD publication cites data that NATO spent at least 1.2 million euros on shooting down Russian drones, which flew into Polish territory on the night of September 10. NATO has determined that three Russian drones were destroyed by two F-35 fighters. It is indicated that the fourth is still under investigation.
