Estonian, British troops to commence mission on Poland's border
The Polish defence minister has announced that Estonian and British engineering troops, already in Poland, will soon start their mission on the country's border with Belarus.
Andrzej Duda, the Polish president, has given consent for the foreign troops to support Polish forces in containing the migration crisis on the country's border with Belarus, the head of the National Security Bureau (BBN) tweeted on Thursday.
"First, there will be a coordination meeting with Polish Army commanders. And later, the Estonian and British soldiers will start their mission on the Polish-Belarusian border," Minister Mariusz Blaszczak wrote on Twitter on Friday.
The BBN said on Twitter that, "in line with the decision of President @AndrzejDuda, components [UK flag] (of up to 155 soldiers) and [Estonian flag] (up to 150 soldiers) from 2.12 to 30.04 will carry out tasks related to engineering and reconnaissance support of an operation by the Polish Armed Forces, conducted in the border zone."
Poland has been tackling migratory pressure at its border with Belarus since spring, accusing Alexander Lukashenko, the Belarusian president, of orchestrating the situation in retaliation for EU sanctions.
From December 1, 2021 to March 1, 2022, areas adjacent to Poland's border with Belarus, which had earlier been under a state of emergency, will be subject to restricted access with only local residents and businesspeople permitted entrance.
