Exercise Zapad: Why Is Poland Closing Its Border With Belarus Amid Fears Of Russian Attack? | Europe

The Zapad exercises have drawn criticism from NATO members for their scale and opacity

Photo : AP

Poland will close its border with Belarus at midnight on Thursday due to Russian-Belarusian military exercises beginning this week, Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed on Tuesday. The “Zapad-2025” manoeuvres, starting Friday, will be held in Belarus and western Russia near NATO’s eastern frontier. “For national security reasons, we will close the border with Belarus, including railway crossings,” Tusk told a government meeting.

Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski added that the border would reopen only once the government was confident there was “no more threat to Polish citizens”. The Zapad drills, conducted every few years, are designed to test military readiness and interoperability between Russian and Belarusian forces. This year, they involve contingents from over 20 countries, including India, Iran, and China.

NATO Concerns Over Russian Drills

The Zapad exercises have drawn criticism from NATO members for their scale and opacity. Past drills have been accused of underreporting troop numbers to bypass OSCE monitoring rules. Western officials say Russia has previously used such exercises as cover for larger operations, including its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Polish Troops

In recent years, Zapad drills have included scenarios with tactical nuclear weapons and missile systems such as the Russian Oreshnik, signalling Moscow’s deterrence posture. Lithuania has already reinforced security along its Belarusian border, while NATO is conducting parallel drills in Poland and Lithuania this month.

Diplomatic Fallout With Minsk

The Belarusian Foreign Ministry summoned Poland’s chargé d’affaires to protest the closure, calling it “an abuse of its geographical position”. Minsk argued the suspension caused “significant difficulties” and accused Warsaw of concealing its own intentions. Belarusian media also reported the arrest of a Polish national accused of espionage related to the drills. Notably, relations between Poland and Belarus have worsened since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Tusk said Polish authorities had recently arrested a Belarusian spy and would expel a diplomat who “supported the aggressive action of the Belarusian state against Poland”. He credited Czech and Romanian cooperation for the intelligence breakthrough.

Regional Escalation Risks

Neighbouring states have also taken action in response to Zapad-2025. The Czech Republic announced the expulsion of a Belarusian diplomat on espionage charges, while Romania confirmed an investigation into a former Moldovan intelligence chief for treason. France, meanwhile, saw political developments unrelated to the drills, with President Emmanuel Macron naming Sébastien Lecornu as prime minister.

The Belarusian defence ministry confirmed Zapad-2025 will include nuclear-related drills and tests of the hypersonic Oreshnik missile system. NATO officials say the timing and scale of the exercises underscore the risks of escalation on the alliance’s eastern flank.