Polish travellers heading toward Belarus were advised on 25 July to reroute after the national border-information portal Granica.gov.pl announced an immediate suspension of traffic through the Połowce and Sławatycze road crossings. The notice follows a security assessment by the Ministry of the Interior and the Border Guard that highlighted staffing shortages and technical maintenance requirements at the two posts. Although commercial freight flows are being redirected to the larger Koroszczyn/Kukuryki terminal, the closure interrupts the most convenient route for small exporters and cross-border commuters serving the Podlaskie and Lubelskie provinces. Passenger cars and coaches must now detour up to 120 kilometres north to the fully operational Terespol rail-road complex. The move comes at a time of tighter controls along the eastern flank of the EU’s Schengen zone. Since March 2024 Warsaw has kept temporary checks in place on the Belarus and Russian Kaliningrad borders, citing hybrid-threat activity and irregular-migration pressures. Businesses that rely on just-in-time deliveries from factories in Brest or Pinsk should build extra lead time into their logistics plans and ensure drivers carry updated route authorisations. The Border Guard did not specify a re-opening date but said a review would take place “within several days”. Companies enrolled in Poland’s AEO or Trusted Trader programmes can request priority re-routing; however, industry associations warn of likely queue buildups at Kuźnica and Bobrowniki if the suspension lasts beyond the current harvest-export peak.
