On Friday, October 3, the president of Poland, Karol Navrotsky, signed a decree that provides for the involvement of units of the Armed Forces to support the Border Guard on the borders with Germany and Lithuania. According to the document, additional military units will be stationed there from October 5 to April 4, 2026, and will ensure the inviolability of the state border and public order in the areas of border crossings.
Additionally, in a separate order, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk mobilized personnel of the Military Gendarmerie to assist the Border Guard at the border with Germany until the temporary border control ends.
As a reminder, controls on the borders with Germany and Lithuania were introduced on July 7, 2025.
Context of the events and consequences
In this context, the initiative combines strengthening border protection with the broader security situation in the region: on September 9, Tusk announced the decision to completely close the border with Belarus from September 12 due to increasing provocations by Russia and Belarus and their joint military exercises “West-2025”.
On the night of September 10, Russian drones breached Poland’s airspace; the military carried out an operation to neutralize them, for the first time shooting down targets over the country. The Prime Minister informed NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and stated that Poland would not impose additional restrictions.
According to official sources, Poland destroyed about four of the nineteen drones; fragments from the downed drones were found in several settlements. The Kremlin did not issue official comments, but Russia’s Defense Ministry stated that during the attack on Ukraine drones with a range of about 700 kilometers were used.
Joint Russian-Belarusian exercises “West-2025” began on September 12 with about 30,000 service members participating. The main goal of the exercises is to demonstrate the strength of the Western coalition and to test capabilities for ensuring security and deterring aggression.
Lithuania has strengthened border protection with Belarus and Russia in connection with the West exercises, according to the information agency. On September 15, officers of the U.S. Army arrived in Belarus and observed the maneuvers.