Reuters reported the information.The large-scale drills, to be conducted in western Russia and Belarus, have heightened security concerns in neighboring NATO members Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia.“On Friday, Russian-Belarusian maneuvers, very aggressive from a military doctrine perspective, begin in Belarus, very close to the Polish border,” Tusk told a government meeting. “Therefore, for national security reasons, we will close the border with Belarus, including railway crossings, in connection with the Zapad maneuvers on Thursday at midnight.”Relations between Poland and Belarus have sharply deteriorated since Minsk’s ally Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Most Polish-Belarusian border crossings have already been shut, with only two still in operation.Tensions rose further last week when Belarusian state media reported that a Polish national had been arrested on suspicion of espionage for allegedly possessing documents linked to the Zapad drills.According to Belarus’s defense minister, Zapad-2025 will feature training on the possible use of nuclear weapons and the Russian-made, intermediate-range hypersonic Oreshnik missile. NATO forces are set to hold simultaneous exercises on their side of the border.The Belarusian and Russian embassies in Warsaw did not immediately respond to requests for comment.Russia may use the joint Zapad-2025 exercises in Belarus as a form of covert mobilization, according to military analyst Vasyl Pekhnio.