First in Latvia: How Lukashenko and the Kremlin Are Digging Tunnels Along EU and NATO Borders

The discovery prompted Riga to urgently launch a large-scale security operation codenamed "Vilkatis" ("Werewolf"). Meanwhile, in Lithuania and Poland, subterranean passages have already become a systematic challenge, with structural analyses pointing to the involvement of professional engineers experienced in Middle Eastern underground warfare.

Latvia: The First Underground Tunnel Near Silene and the Launch of Operation "Vilkatis"

On the night of August 11, 2026, in the Silene border guard sector in Skrudaliena Parish, Augšdaugava Municipality, Latvian border guards—alongside police units and K-9 teams—detained a group of 15 irregular migrants whose clothes were caked in fresh sand and dirt.

Tracking the infiltrators' path led law enforcement directly to a disguised subterranean exit. Security forces uncovered a 17-meter tunnel dug from Belarusian territory beneath the border fence. The exit aperture, measuring approximately half a meter in diameter, emerged roughly 10 meters inside Latvian territory past the physical barrier.

The Latvian leadership reacted swiftly and decisively. On August 11, an emergency press conference was convened featuring Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs, Minister of the Interior Jānis Dombrava, Minister of Defence Raivis Melnis, and the Head of the Crisis Management Centre, Colonel Arvis Zīle.

The government announced the launch of a special security operation named "Vilkatis" ("Werewolf"), scheduled to run through at least the end of August:

• Deployment of the National Armed Forces (NBS): Additional military units, armored vehicles, aircraft, and helicopters are being redeployed to the eastern frontier.

• Round-the-Clock Monitoring: Comprehensive aerial and electronic surveillance regimes are being established, deploying drones equipped with thermal imaging.

• Subsurface Scanning: The Ministry of the Interior directed teams to conduct ground-penetrating radar and seismic scans along the border strip to sweep for additional hidden tunnels.

• Disrupting Logistics Networks: Security forces initiated sweeping raids against criminal rings inside Latvia involved in the temporary housing and transport of migrants onward to Germany and other EU member states.

As Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs noted, the orchestrators of these migration flows operate by identifying the weakest link: whenever Poland or Lithuania fortifies its defenses, pressure instantly shifts toward Latvia. Operation "Vilkatis" aims to eliminate any possibility of Latvian territory serving as the "soft underbelly" of the Baltic region.

Lithuania: Systematic Subterranean Tunnels Beneath Border Infrastructure

While Latvia's August discovery was an unprecedented event, counteracting underground routes has already become business as usual in Lithuania. Since the beginning of 2026 alone, the State Border Guard Service of Lithuania (VSAT) has recorded over 12 attempted illegal crossings via underground passages.

In a span of just a few weeks across July and August 2026, Lithuanian border guards neutralized three separate tunnels:

1. July 23: An unfinished tunnel extending 5 meters into Lithuanian territory was discovered near the village of Pesčiai.

1. July 26: An 11-meter subterranean passage was detected near the settlement of Pertak.

1. August 5: A third tunnel, dug at a depth of 1.5 meters, was uncovered. It had been reinforced with logs and planks to prevent collapse, with its entrance on the Belarusian side concealed using thick fabric and foliage.

To locate these hidden passages, Lithuanian security forces enlisted Polish specialists equipped with advanced subsurface probing and acoustic monitoring gear. Following investigative proceedings, all identified tunnels were backfilled and sealed with concrete.

Poland and the Middle Eastern Connection: The Engineering Complexity of Subterranean Warfare

The most substantial and engineered tunnels have been uncovered along the Polish-Belarusian section of the border. Poland's Podlaskie Border Guard Unit reported neutralizing at least four underground structures.

The largest among them was exposed near the town of Narewka in eastern Poland:

• Dimensions: The tunnel measured approximately 1.5 meters in height, allowing individuals to move through in a crouched position or on all fours. Its total length reached 60 meters (50 meters inside Belarusian territory and 10 meters within Poland).

• Construction: The walls and ceiling were reinforced with concrete struts, wooden beams, and heavy-duty shoring designed to withstand significant soil pressure.

• Scale of Use: A single operation used this passage to move a group of 180 migrants, primarily citizens of Afghanistan and Pakistan, most of whom were apprehended immediately upon emerging.

British and Polish military experts highlight the sophisticated engineering of these structures. Precision tunneling across tens of meters—maintaining alignment, calculating proper ventilation, and structural shoring—requires specialized expertise far beyond the capacity of migrants or low-level smugglers.

Defense analysts and intelligence sources suggest the regime in Minsk may have recruited foreign specialists from the Middle East to design and construct these passages. Potential sources of expertise include engineering personnel affiliated with the Palestinian group Hamas, Lebanese Hezbollah, or veteran fighters from Kurdish militias or Islamist cells in Syria and Iraq who have spent years perfecting underground warfare tactics.

Poland’s Deputy Interior Minister, Czesław Mroczek, emphasized that the emergence of tunnels is the paradox of highly effective surface barriers: once fences and optical surveillance rendered conventional border breaches ineffective, hybrid adversaries were forced to adopt complex subterranean tactics.

The Geopolitical Objective Behind Moscow and Minsk's Hybrid Strategy

The deployment of underground tunnels—much like the widespread launch of contraband balloons equipped with GPS trackers probing Baltic airspace—forms part of an integrated hybrid campaign executed by the Kremlin and the Lukashenko regime.

The key objectives behind this hybrid campaign include:

1. Destabilization and Exhaustion: Forcing NATO and EU member states to commit thousands of military, border guard, and police personnel to the frontier, draining public budgets into border defense infrastructure.

1. Probing Capabilities and Blind Spots: Continuously testing NATO’s defense posture—from ground frontiers and subsurface space to air defense systems forced to respond to balloons and drones.

1. Fostering Social and Political Tension: Infiltration attempts aim to incite domestic political discord across Europe, fueling radical sentiment and pressuring governments that maintain steadfast support for Ukraine against Russian aggression.

1. Retaliation for Sanctions and Support for Kyiv: Minsk and Moscow seek to punish neighboring states for their active stance against Russian imperialism and their enforcement of economic sanctions.