Yesterday at 21:11
The leaders of Poland and the Baltic countries express their fears that the fighters of the private military company (PMC) “Wagner” will be transferred to the so-called Suwalki Corridor.
This facility is located on the Polish-Lithuanian border, not far from the Belarusian city of Grodno, and got its name from the city of Suwalki in eastern Poland, where 70,000 people live.
A threat to Poland and the Baltic countries
The Suwalk corridor is of great strategic importance, as it is the border between the Baltic states and other European countries. This is a section of the Polish-Lithuanian border with a length of about 100 kilometers.
This territory connects Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia with the rest of the European Union and NATO countries and separates the Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation from Belarus.
In the event of an attack by the Russian army or the fighters of the “Wagner” PMK, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia may be cut off from their Western allies, in particular, from Poland and other European states.
As the secretary of the National Security and Defense Committee of Poland, Zbigniew Hoffman, stated, the joint exercises of the Belarusian army and the “Wagner” group are a provocation.
“The National Security and Defense Committee analyzed the possible threats, and the Minister of National Defense Mariusz Blanchard decided to move our military formations from the west to the east of Poland. The task of these units is training, as well as deterring a potential aggressor,” Zbigniew Hoffman emphasized.
At the same time, if the Russian army or “Wagner” fighters storm the Suwalki corridor, the NATO leadership will consider this a reason to trigger Article 5 of the Alliance’s charter, which states that if “one North Atlantic Alliance state becomes the victim of an armed attack, all other states will consider this act of violence is an armed attack on all NATO countries.”
At the same time, the self-proclaimed president of Belarus, Oleksandr Lukashenko, said that the Suvalk corridor is outside the country’s borders, and they absolutely do not need it.
“Listen, the Suvalk corridor is not in Belarus. We do not move through this corridor, nor to the corridor. We don’t need it for a thousand years. The main thing is to be calm,” said Lukashenko.
He also stated that the army of Belarus will move its military units as it deems necessary. According to him, the states bordering Belarus should “be grateful” for the fact that he invited the “Wagner” PMC to their country.
“We are building a defense according to the plan, based on the experience of even these “Wagnerians”. Let them thank the Belarusians and me for inviting these fighters to us. And this is not one thousand. I don’t even want to name. In total, today they have more than 30,000 people under their control. These are guys charged for war… Therefore, let them pray that we keep them, somehow provide for them. That’s why I don’t need to reproach, but let them say thank you,” said Oleksandr Lukashenko.
Oleksandr Kovalenko, a military and political observer of the Information Resistance group, noted that claims about the capture of the Suvalk corridor primarily come from Russian propagandists.
In his opinion, without the use of heavy equipment, armored vehicles and artillery, the “Wagner” PMC will not break through about 100 km of the Suwalki corridor, which is well protected by the Polish and Lithuanian armies.
“From the “Wagners” for Poland, as well as Lithuania and Latvia, there can only be a threat of sabotage and terrorist activity in the border zone. Other threats are excluded. If only Moscow does not have a goal to completely get rid of the “Wagner” PMC and throw them into a suicidal mission. But it is not so. Rzeszów can sleep peacefully,” Kovalenko stressed.
About the possible assault by the militants of the “Wagner” PVC on the Suwalki corridor and what awaits the “Wagners” in Poland, the FREEDOM TV channel said:
Valery Matskevich, Belarusian politician, representative of the Coordination Council of Democratic Forces of Belarus;
Tetyana Martynova, Belarusian journalist, founder of the group “Enough to be afraid”;
Vadym Mozheyko, coordinator of the Belarusian expert network “Nasha dumka”;
Anna Krasulina, press secretary of Svitlana Tykhanouska.
VALERIY MATSKEVYCH: The Suvalk corridor is no longer an actual topic
— We are now hearing about the Suwalki Corridor, about this topic, which in today’s configuration has long since ceased to be relevant. But if we return to the question of Lukashenka and the “Wagnerians”, today we cannot fully assert that Lukashenko has any influence or is capable of ordering the “Wagnerians”.
Yes, of course, there were Prigozhin’s statements in the same camp that was built for the “Wagner” PMC. Then, that they are going to make the Belarusian army the second army in the world, it is not clear what the first army is, according to Prigozhin.
That they are going to behave quietly, peacefully. And, actually, their way to Africa from the words of Prigozhin. And, in my opinion, this is quite a sober version. I think that sooner or later these soldiers of fortune will end up there, because after all, Lukashenka simply does not have the funds to maintain such an army of mercenaries on the territory of Belarus.
Yes, Lukashenko himself said that they are stressing him and, I think, will continue to stress him, because Lukashenko is used to the fact that he has a monopoly on violence in Belarus.
And the “Wagnerians” already today even go to local stores with handguns, start to behave aggressively, and this can only provoke even faster popular riots, even faster encourage Belarusians to express their civic position more actively somewhere in Polissia, they can simply raise the fork.
TETYANA MARTYNOVA: The provocations in the Suvalki Corridor did not start yesterday
— The Suwalki Corridor is such an old song about the main thing about its possible assault by all kinds of scumbags. Many work plans and dissertations were written, epaulettes were received for officers from NATO countries, because the security of this corridor and possible provocations in this region did not start yesterday. It always was.
So, we have from 3 to 5 thousand bandits. Yes, small arms, unworthy uniform – and that’s all. Well, the alleged stupidity and courage are added to this.
Of course, Lukashenko will aggravate the situation at the border. First, he needs informational reasons. Secondly, he needs to hate Europe for something, that is, just hate it for gay parades and NATO.
And there is still a mystical position that the West allegedly wants to conquer Belarus. This is not enough, something more is needed. I would like to remind you that the level of malaise in Belarus has reached such a level that one of the main channels writes that Brest was liberated from NATO troops in 1944, which were then called Hitler’s troops.
VADIM MOZHEIKO: Lukashenka’s statements are not a joke at all
— First of all, I believe that the ongoing escalation and provocations that are ongoing now with regard to Poland, first of all, pose a threat to Belarus itself, because, ultimately, Lukashenka’s actions continue to defeat Putin.
We have seen in recent weeks Putin’s statements that territories were unfairly given to Poland after World War II. In general, everything is very reminiscent of Putin’s talks about Ukraine.
And in this sense, of course, these provocative statements by Lukashenka about the “excursion to Poland” – when necessary, by the way, he knows how to joke, he does not have a bad sense of humor – in this case, of course, these are not jokes at all, but threats and provocations And of course, this creates all the threats and consequences for Belarus.
Because if we imagine such madness as a military conflict between Russia or its proxy with Poland from the territory of Belarus, then, frankly, in the history of Belarus, unfortunately, it happened more than once when the West and the East fought on the territory of Belarus, regardless of how these conflicts ended.
I doubt that the “Wagnerians” could go to Warsaw against NATO troops, especially now without heavy equipment. Therefore, in the end, this is all a very dangerous game played by Lukashenko, which really poses threats primarily to Belarus itself.
