Belarus begins military drills near its border with Poland and Lithuania as tensions heighten

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Belarus has begun military exercises near its border with Poland and Lithuania. The drills Monday come with tensions already heightened with the two NATO members over the influx of Russia-linked Wagner mercenaries into Belarus after their short-lived mutiny in Russia. Both Poland and Lithuania have increased border security since thousands of Wagner fighters arrived in Belarus under a deal that ended their armed rebellion in late June and allowed them and their leader to avoid criminal charges. Leaders of the two NATO nations have said they are bracing for provocations from Moscow and Minsk in a sensitive area where both countries border Belarus as well as the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.