Poland mobilises police over possible sabotage near Kaliningrad border

Polish police have set up a special operations headquarters to coordinate preventive security measures in the Warmian-Masurian and Podlaskie voivodeships following warnings of possible sabotage near the border with Russia's Kaliningrad Oblast. The effort brings police together with the armed forces, border guards and security services.

Marek Boroń, Commander-in-Chief of the Polish National Police, described the preparations in an interview with Polish radio station RMF FM, reported by European Pravda. He said the measures responded to information that acts of sabotage could occur in the coming days. His account linked the mobilisation to threats involving diversion, sabotage and the activities of Eastern intelligence services.

Police are leading the operation from a command centre at the National Police Headquarters. Regional police headquarters in Olsztyn and Białystok are also taking part. Reinforcements drawn from police departments in several voivodeships have arrived in the border area as authorities prepare to respond to possible incidents.

The warnings reached Polish authorities last week through military intelligence and allied intelligence services. They indicated that sabotage could take place along the border with Russia and included the possibility of incursions by armed groups. Boroń also cited information received from external services when explaining why additional police had been sent to the area.

Boroń said the deployment was intended to keep residents safe, protect facilities and enable a response to situations threatening the public. He described the police presence as a precaution against incidents that might lead to sabotage. The preparations concern possible threats, with the operation organised around prevention and readiness to respond.

He rejected a connection between the police mobilisation and the political crisis surrounding Poland's Constitutional Tribunal. A dispute over the tribunal's leadership has prompted protests and a confrontation between the government and the opposition, but Boroń said that dispute was unrelated to the border security operation.

The security preparations come alongside plans for Poland's Territorial Defence Forces to establish a special brigade responsible for protecting the Kaliningrad border. Lithuania's heightened security measures on its own border with the Russian exclave are also to remain in place until mid-November.

Separately, Russian ruler Vladimir Putin recently confirmed threats conveyed through Russian embassies to NATO countries. He said Russia would use its entire weapons arsenal if Kaliningrad or another Russian region came under direct attack.