EU 'closely' monitors possible trade impact of Poland-Belarus border closure

Published on 18/09/2025 - 14:03 GMT+2

The European Commission is monitoring the imaginable economical interaction caused by the closure of each crossing points betwixt Poland and Belarus, which has efficaciously unopen down a accepted commercialized way betwixt the bloc and China.

"We are surely looking astatine it closely, but it's excessively aboriginal to spell into further detail," Olof Gill, the Commission's lawman main spokesperson, said connected Thursday.

The Polish authorities decreed the implicit closure this week successful effect to the large-scale subject exercises conducted by the Belarusian and Russian forces, known arsenic Zapad-2025, adjacent the borderline with Poland and Lithuania.

The associated exercises followed an unprecedented incursion of 19 Russian drones into Polish airspace, putting NATO allies connected precocious alert.

Poland has severely restricted roadworthy postulation with Belarus since Minsk launched a run of instrumentalised migration successful the summertime of 2021, an lawsuit that prompted Warsaw to instal high-tech alloy fences, deploy the service and make a no-go buffer zone.

The caller determination goes further due to the fact that it besides affects railway traffic, which had until present remained mostly unaffected by the information tensions.

The measurement "is successful effect until further announcement and is dictated by concerns for the information of Polish citizens", the Polish interior ministry said successful a statement, noting the interruption volition proceed aft the now-concluded subject drills.

The ministry acknowledged the logistical "challenge" for carriers and suggested utilizing the crossing constituent betwixt Belarus and Lithuania arsenic an alternate route.

"Losses volition beryllium assessed erstwhile we cognize however agelong the borderline volition beryllium closed," it said.

The railway closure reportedly affects €25 cardinal successful goods betwixt the EU and China. The fig represents a tiny fraction of the €732 cardinal successful goods exchanged betwixt the 2 sides in 2024, mostly by sea.

On Thursday, the European Commission, which has exclusive competence connected commercialized matters, trod cautiously to debar the content of criticising Poland.

Since the commencement of tensions with Belarus, Brussels has expressed continued solidarity with Warsaw, providing further EU funds and relaxing asylum rules.

"This is simply a information issue," Gill said, echoing the Polish position.

"There is simply a commercialized interaction erstwhile a borderline is unopen down on which commercialized routes flow. We're successful interaction with the Polish authorities to look astatine each aspects of this issue," helium went on.

"Any trade-related challenges that originate from specified a information concern are happening due to the fact that of Russia's brutal, amerciable and unjustified war."

It was not instantly wide if the Commission was besides successful progressive discussions with the Chinese authorities to measure the economical impact.

On Monday, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met with his Polish counterpart, Radosław Sikorski, successful Warsaw. However, the read-out released by Beijing did not notation the closure of the crossing constituent and alternatively spoke, successful wide terms, astir "the sustainable improvement of bilateral trade" betwen Poland and China.