Polish citizens will be invited to express their opinion on maintaining the fence on the border with Belarus, Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said on social networks on Monday, dpa reports. The referendum will be held on October 15, the day of the parliamentary elections.

Voters will be asked whether they support “removing the barrier on the border between Poland and Belarus,” the minister wrote.

Last year, Poland strengthened its border with Belarus with a 5.5-meter-high metal fence that stretched 187 kilometers.

If at the time the fence was built, the initiative was criticized by opposition politicians, now, given the current situation, since Belarus is a close ally of Russia, there is no significant opposition to it.

Recently, there has been growing concern in Poland about the activities of Wagner’s Russian mercenaries in Belarus and the increase in the number of migrants from crisis regions who want to secretly enter the European Union through Belarus.

Despite backing the border fence, the opposition says the proposed referendum is a campaign tactic as the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party comes under pressure from high inflation, anti-abortion legislation and a series of nepotism scandals.

Against this background, PiS leader Yaroslav Kaczyński in June proposed the idea of ​​a referendum in parallel with the elections.

In October, in parallel with the elections, three more important issues will be voted on: EU asylum policy, raising the retirement age and privatization of state-owned companies.

The opposition accuses PiS of using these referendums to mobilize more voters for the parliamentary elections. (Source: Agerpres / Photo: Dreamstime.com)