The European Union is going to monitor the effects on EU-China trade of the temporary closure of the Polish-Belarusian border, following weeks of tension due to higher military activity.
Poland decreed a complete closure of all access points between Poland and Belarus due to the high-level, large-scale military exercise Zapad-2025 conducted by joint Russian and Belarusian forces close to the border of Belarus with Poland and Lithuania.
The decision also came after an unprecedented entrance of 19 Russian drones inside Poland’s airspace, a move that sent the whole NATO into high alert. According to Poland’s interior minister, the closure will continue “until further notice.”
The border has already been severely controlled since 2021 after Belarus used it to destabilise its neighbour by pushing migrants into Poland. The Polish government responded by establishing a no-go zone, electrifying the fences, and monitoring road traffic at the border.
The new ban will also involve railway traffic and has got the EU’s attention. Freight trains routinely pass through there and are responsible for moving around €25 billion in goods between the EU and China. It is not the major trade route between the two, as sea routes move the majority of goods. Poland’s interior ministry acknowledged the possible challenges and suggested re-routing towards the border between Belarus and Lithuania while the closure continues.
However, the European Commission still wants to check how the closure may impact the bloc, but is still firmly supporting Poland’s decision. The Commission’s Deputy Chief Spokesperson, Olof Gill, said on Thursday that the case “is a security issue” and added that “we’re in touch with the Polish authorities to look at all aspects of this issue.”
