Tusk warns of further Russian incidents on the Polish-Ukrainian border

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said an “imminent threat” was thwarted at a Polish border crossing with Ukraine on Wednesday evening. At the same time, he warned of further incidents related to Russia in the coming months. The statements came on Thursday after a meeting of the heads of state and government of the Visegrád Group in Bratislava. The news magazine “Politico”, which, like WELT, belongs to the Axel Springer Group, reports on this.

A day earlier, an incident occurred at a border crossing between Ukraine and Moldova. Two people were killed and several others injured by a Russian drone strike.

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Tusk did not provide details about the nature of the threat or which of the 18 border crossings between Poland and Ukraine were affected. However, the incident may only be a foretaste of further developments. The Polish head of government said he had received a “fairly precise report” from the CIA about possible events in the coming months.

"We need to anticipate different scenarios; both Poland and all of Europe need to be prepared for different possibilities regarding the situation not only on the Russian-Ukrainian front, but also along the EU's eastern flank," he said.

"As you know, Russia has already carried out provocative attacks on border crossings - for example in Moldova. We expect similar actions against border crossings with Ukraine in other countries, including Poland," Tusk said.

After the attack on the border crossing between Moldova and the Odessa region of Ukraine, Moldovan President Maia Sandu called for additional European support in Ukraine's air defense. Russia had already attacked another border crossing between Moldova and Ukraine in August.

In August, after a conversation with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Tusk warned of a progressive escalation by Russia and called for more air defense support for Ukraine. This is “crucial for our security”. The next six months will be particularly important, said Tusk. Provocations against NATO member states cannot be ruled out.

This article first appeared on Politico. Translated from English and edited by Anna Kröning and Leonhard Landes.

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