Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Sunday claimed that the Wagner forces stationed in the country wanted to invade Poland. This comes after Warsaw ramped up military troops at the border near Belarus following an increase in joint exercises between the Wagner troops and the Belarus Army.
Lukashenko was addressing a media event in St Petersburg with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the latter's first visit to Belarus since the Wagner rebellion was averted. The Belarusian President said that Wagner fighters "are asking to go to the West."
He further claimed that the Wagner forces said, "We’ll go on an excursion to Warsaw, to Rzeszow". Rzeszow is a Polish city very close to Ukraine.
As per media reports, Lukashenko alleged that Poland was preparing to attack Belarus and was helping Ukraine in its war against Russia.
Tensions between Poland and Belarus increased after Belarusian forces announced joint military exercises with Wagner fighters near its border with the NATO member-state, causing Warsaw to move its troops to the border.
Putin had earlier warned Poland that any war on Belarus would be considered an attack on Russia itself, and that Moscow would use any means at its disposal to protect its ally.
Putin said there were reports of plans for a Polish-Lithuanian unit to be used for operations in western Ukraine – parts of which in the past belonged to Poland – and ultimately to occupy territory there.
Notably, Russia witnessed a series of dramatic events last month after Wagner forces. led by Yevgeny Prigozhin called for a short-lived mutiny-- in the latest event that demonstrated a feud between the country's official and private armies publically. Later, Lukashenko brokered a deal wherein it was abruptly mentioned that Wagner soldiers had to move to Belarusian territory.
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