Belarusian helicopters possibly spotted in Poland, Warsaw initially denied it

Belarus has warned Poland of a possible flight of several military helicopters, witnessed on Tuesday by residents of border settlements; Polish authorities later confirmed that the helicopters crossed the state border.

Source: European Pravda

Details: On the morning of Tuesday, 1 August, Polish media reported the sighting of Belarusian helicopters in the city of Białowieża, in the Podlaskie Voivodeship near the Polish-Belarusian border. Military exercises often take place there, so at first, the locals did not pay much attention to the aircraft.  

Photos of Belarusian helicopters were posted by local volunteer Eliza Kowalczyk, who stated that they entered the airspace of Białowieża. So did the locals who said helicopters flew over the rooftops of their homes.

Local OSINT researchers who analyse the open data from the photographs found that the helicopters flew from Belarus to Poland near the village of Grudki, moved about three kilometres inland, turned around and flew over Białowieża.

At the same time, the Polish side denies the fact of crossing the border from Belarus.

Lieutenant Colonel Jacek Goryszewski, a spokesman for the Polish Armed Forces Operational Command, told the state-run PAP news agency that the radar systems did not record a violation of Polish airspace.

He added that Minsk told Warsaw that on Tuesday, there could be a maximum of three helicopters near the Polish border, and their flights should have been of a training nature. 

Quote: "It can be seen as normal flying, it's not an anomaly. This is a common phenomenon in the border region," he stressed.

Independent radio station RMF FM also reported that there were no signs of violation of the airspace of Poland. Media sources in military circles say that with sufficient visibility, helicopters could be spotted from Białowieża and give the impression that they are on the Polish side.

Update at 8:35 p.m. On Tuesday evening, the Polish Ministry of National Defence confirmed the violation of Polish airspace by two Belarusian helicopters.

After an attempted rebellion in Russia, the militants of the Wagner Private Military Company (PMC) relocated into Belarus. The Polish side has repeatedly emphasised that the Wagnerites pose a threat to Poland, and reinforced the Belarusian-Polish border.

Earlier: Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki announced the relocation of a group of mercenaries from the Wagner Group to the Suwałki Gap, which connects the country with the Baltic States and also separates the territory of Russian Kaliningrad Oblast and Belarus.

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