Poland will send 5,000 soldiers to its border with Germany in a dramatic move aimed at halting the return of failed asylum seekers — a decision that risks escalating already fraught tensions between Warsaw and Berlin. The deployment, announced by Poland’s general staff, is set to begin on Monday.
Troops will also be stationed on the Lithuanian border and are expected to check vehicles for migrants and carry out surveillance operations using drones operated by the Polish air force. The decision follows repeated complaints from the Polish government about so-called “pushbacks” — the forced return of asylum seekers by German authorities. Warsaw claims Berlin is breaching EU principles by offloading responsibility for failed asylum seekers who had originally crossed into Germany from Polish territory.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk defended the move, insisting it was necessary to protect national sovereignty and limit irregular migration.
He said: “We consider the temporary restoration of controls at the Polish-German border necessary to limit and reduce to a minimum the uncontrolled flows of migrants back and forth.”
German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser suggested joint patrols along the frontier to manage the situation — but the idea was swiftly rejected by Warsaw, reported the Telegaph.
Poland’s Defence minister Waldemar Kosiniak-Kamysz responded bluntly: “The minister from Germany will not tell us what to do in Poland. With sympathy, with respect, but we will protect Polish borders ourselves.”
The dispute comes amid growing public frustration across the EU over undocumented migration and has reignited debate over the future of the bloc’s passport-free Schengen zone. Like several other EU states, Germany and Poland have reintroduced internal border controls over the past year.
Tensions have mounted further in recent weeks following reports of civilian patrols on the Polish side of the border, formed by far-right groups opposed to immigration. Some have been accused of forcibly returning migrants — including an 18-year-old Afghan man — back into Germany, prompting concern from human rights organisations.
Mr Tusk condemned such actions, saying: “The more the Polish state regains control at the borders, the more strongly it is attacked by [right-wing opposition parties] Law and Justice, the Confederation and their militias. They are trying to paralyse our border guard. We will not allow this.”
He also warned that Poland’s “patient position” was wearing thin in response to Germany’s “unilateral” border decisions.
Berlin’s move to step up deportations came after Friedrich Merz became German Chancellor earlier this year, pledging to crack down on illegal immigration.
Since then, the number of refugees arriving in Germany has dropped by 60% — the lowest figure since the pandemic — prompting criticism from Polish officials who say they are now bearing the brunt of Berlin’s new strategy.
Adding to the political stakes, Poland’s ruling liberal coalition recently suffered a setback when the Law & Justice-backed candidate Karol Nawrocki won the presidency.
Mr Nawrocki has publicly praised civilian patrols, saying they reflect “citizen-led control of the borders”.