Polish defense minister says Belarus preparing to send new wave of migrants into EU

Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said Wednesday that he believes a new wave of "attacks" by migrants along the eastern border with Belarus is imminent.

"Two years ago, Poland was attacked by our neighbors from Belarus and we took proactive steps to strengthen the border, the Polish Army erecting a temporary fence," Blaszczak told reporters in Krynki after a meeting of the Committee of the Council of Ministers for National Security and Defense Affairs.

In the fall of 2021, the Belarusian regime started transporting thousands of migrants it had invited from their homes in Africa and the Middle East to Belarus over the border into Poland, and hence also the EU.

International observers said it was a calculated and coordinated part of Russia's, and by extension, Belarus's, hybrid warfare.

"Today we can expect another attack. The policy implemented by Lukashenko two years ago is still maintained. This policy was coordinated in the Kremlin," said Blaszczak.

He said attacks on Polish armed services come from inside Poland, referring to a film by Polish director Agnieszka Holland about the border crisis.

"This is a blow to the morale of soldiers and officers and to Poland's interests. Therefore, we have prepared a resolution in which we support the Polish services. I would like to thank the public for their support - we stand behind the Polish uniform," he said.

"The film made by people from (opposition leader, Donald) Tusk's supporters turns the Polish army and guards into murderers and sadists. These are lies," he said.

Blaszczak also said this week that Lublin, a city in eastern Poland, could "become the new Bucza," a reference to the war-hit Ukrainian city.

Blaszcza 's statements come amid allegations that Polish officials sold thousands of visas to individuals from Asia, while the ruling party deploys anti-immigration rhetoric.