Four NATO members warned that they will close the border with Belarus in case of incidents

Poland and the three Baltic states warned today that they will close their borders with Russia's ally Belarus in the event of any military incidents or heavy migrant pressure under the influence of Minsk.

The interior ministers of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia said in a joint statement that they are noticing growing tensions on the borders of NATO and the European Union with Belarus, which has received thousands of mercenaries from the Russian paramilitary group Wagner and is encouraging migrants from the Middle East and Africa to enter the EU despite the barriers.

Four members of NATO and the EU, which support Ukraine in the fight against the Russian invasion, have asked the authorities of Belarus to immediately remove the mercenaries of the Wagner Group from its territory.

They also asked Minsk to remove migrants from the border areas and return them to their home countries, warning that a quick reaction would follow in the event of a military incident or a large influx of migrants.

Last week's sudden death of Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin in a plane crash in Russia raised questions about the future of the mercenary paramilitary, which Polish Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski described as "extremely dangerous" and "demoralized." He also said that Wagner's mercenaries pose a threat to the citizens of Belarus and the entire region.

According to a decree published on the Kremlin's website on Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered Wagner fighters to sign an oath of allegiance to the Russian state.