Poland 'closely monitoring' China-Belarus military cooperation

Poland is monitoring cooperation between China and Belarus, its Foreign Ministry said on Friday, following reports that Chinese military has been undertaking joint exercises near the Polish border.

"We are closely monitoring the long-term cooperation between Beijing and Minsk as a factor with a potential impact on Poland's security," the ministry said in a statement to state news agency PAP.

The ministry said it "is concerned" about China's deepening military cooperation with Russia and Belarus.

The Belarusian Defense Ministry said that as part of what it called "anti-terrorism" exercises, troops will practice airborne assault, river crossing and residential combat. The 11-day drill, Eagle Assault 2024, started on Monday in the Brest region, 40 miles (64 km) from Belarus’ border with Ukraine.

More than 100 Chinese troops are expected to remain in Belarus until July 19.

China's exercises with Belarusian forces in Belarus are part of a pattern, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said at the summit in Washington this week. “This only confirms how authoritarian regimes are increasingly allying with each other, and how China is moving closer to NATO in Europe, Africa, the Arctic and elsewhere,” he added.

“The joint military maneuvers of China and Belarus are not directed against any country, and the Chinese authorities hope that Poland and Belarus will solve their problems through dialogue and consultations,” said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian.

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has close ties with Russia. In 2023, it allowed Russia to move some of its tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, and has also sought close relations with China. Belarus recently joined the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, established in 2001 to discuss security concerns in Central Asia.