Poland building wall along border with Russia's Kaliningrad

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Poland’s defense minister said Wednesday that he has ordered the construction of a barrier along the border with the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.

The move comes as Warsaw suspects that Russia plans to facilitate illegal border crossings by Asian and African migrants.

Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said the border needs to be sealed in order for Poland to feel secure. He said he had authorized the construction of a temporary barrier along the 210-kilometer (130-mile) border.

The work began on Wednesday with Polish soldiers specialized in demining carrying out preparatory work. It is due to be completed by the end of 2023.

Blaszczak said a recent decision by Russia's aviation authority to launch flights from the Middle East and North Africa to Kaliningrad led him to take measures that would strengthen security “by sealing this border."

A spokesman for the Border Guard agency, Konrad Szwed, told The Associated Press that the barrier would consist of an electric fence. There is currently no barrier along the border, but there are frequent patrols by border guards, he said.

Poland's border with Belarus became the site of a major migration crisis last year, with large numbers of people crossing illegally. Poland erected a steel wall on the border with Belarus that was completed in June.

Polish and other EU leaders accused the Belarusian government — which is allied with Russian President Vladimir Putin — of masterminding the migration in order to create chaos and division within the European Union.

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