Russia and NATO weigh in as crisis mounts on Belarus-Poland border

A Polish soldier instals barbed wire on the Poland/Belarus border near Kuznica, Poland, in this photograph released by the Polish Defence Ministry, November 9, 2021. Irek Dorozanski/DWOT/Handout via REUTERS

MOSCOW/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union accused Belarus on Wednesday of mounting a "hybrid attack" by pushing migrants across the border into Poland, paving the way for widened sanctions against Minsk in a crisis that threatens to draw in Russia and NATO.

Russia took the rare step of dispatching two nuclear-capable strategic bombers to patrol Belarusian airspace in a show of support for its close ally. Poland briefed fellow NATO allies at a closed-door meeting and they pledged their support, an alliance official said.