The material is available only to
POZIRK+Poland, Lithuania seize Belarus-linked contraband cigarettes
The material is available only to
POZIRK+
Poland reports second airspace violation incident from Belarus this week
January 31, Pozirk. Unidentified objects from Belarus violated Polish airspace overnight, marking the second similar incident this week, the Polish Armed Forces Operational Command reports.
An analysis of the flight parameters allowed the military to identify the objects as weather balloons, frequently used by cigarette smugglers.
Polish authorities temporarily restricted civil aviation flights in the Podlaskie voivodeship in the eastern part of the country for safety reasons.
Some 150 balloons violated Polish airspace early on January 17. Poland’s foreign ministry summoned Belarus’ chargé d’affaires to demand explanations. The most recent similar incident was reported two days ago.
In 2025, Polish border guards detected 185 cigarette-smuggling weather balloons arriving from Belarus, carrying goods worth an estimated $1.2 million.
Balloon incursions have previously caused tensions between Belarus and Lithuania. In late 2025, Vilnius declared an “extreme situation,” a low-level emergency, in response to what it described as a “hybrid attack from Belarus.”
Polish border guards: overnight airspace violations caused by smugglers' balloons
January 29, Pozirk. The Polish border guards have identified some of the objects that violated Polish airspace overnight as weather balloons used for smuggling, the agency's press office reported. “The Polish Border Guard and police keep monitoring the situation on …
