Poland Suspends Military Exercises Using Explosives After Death of Fifth Soldier

The incident in the Tatra Mountains marked the fifth instance of soldiers losing their lives during military exercises held in Poland in March.

The Polish Defense Ministry issued an order on March 26 to suspend military exercises involving explosives and warfare agents nationwide in order to review procedures and ensure safety conditions. The order was posted on the ministry's website.

The decision was made following the death of a serviceman during training exercises in the Tatra Mountains. The ministry has launched an investigation into the circumstances behind the special forces soldier's death.

The incident in the Tatras became the fifth fatality during military exercises held in March. On March 5, two servicemen were killed when an infantry fighting vehicle ran them over on the training grounds of the Armored Forces Training Center. On March 25, two sappers died as a result of a TNT charge detonating at a training range in the Silesian Voivodeship.

The Polish Ministry of Defense has clarified that the suspension of the exercises will not impact the activities of the units preparing for foreign missions and operations, as well as the training of Ukrainian soldiers.

Last week, Poland's "Northeast" multinational division held exercises near the Russian border. The military unit included four NATO combat battalion groups deployed in Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia as part of the Enhanced Forward Presence (EFP).