text: POLISH REFINERY SEEKS PURCHASE OF RUSSIAN OIL: In comments to Russian media outlets, Russian oil pipeline operator, Transneft, said Poland’s state-owned oil refiner Orlen has applied for continued deliveries of Russian oil through the Druzhba Pipeline in 2023. The revelation of the plan represents a significant break from Polish government announcements indicating that Poland would cease using Russian oil by the end of this year, in line with EU embargoes. Analysts note oil deliveries via the Druzbah pipeline are specifically exempted from December’s EU-wide embargo on Russian oil, which only affects sea-born deliveries. Orlen would face substantial financial penalties for any early withdrawal from contracts signed in 2021 that provide deliveries of estimated 3 million tonnes of oil per year.BELARUS: THREAT FROM POLAND, BALTIC STATES RISING: First Deputy Chairman of the Belarusian State Security Committee (KGB), Sergey Terebov, warned of a rising threat of foreign intervention from Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, and Ukraine. Terebov warned against the influence of overseas opposition members claiming they “are actively working on a scenario to change the constitutional system by force.” The comments come alongside remarks by Deputy Chief for Combat Management of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Belarus, Major-General Valery Gnilozub, who warned that active preparations for war were underway in Poland, citing the “accelerated pace” at which Poland was building military infrastructure to accommodate NATO units and the modernization of airfields in Poland and the Baltics capable of hosting 200 combat aircraft. Gnilozub and other Belarusian officials “unquestionably believe that the NATO units deployed in neighboring countries may become the foundation for creating attack forces against Russia and its closest ally Belarus.” (AC: Both sides are ramping up military preparations for conflict. Bellicose rhetoric about the potential for a NATO attack or invasion is likely meant to bolster support for the Belarusian war effort. – M.S.)Latin America SITREPBOLIVIA LIFTS FOOD EXPORT BANS AMID GROWING CIVIL UNREST: Bolivia’s Minister of Productive Development and Plural Economy Néstor Huanca announced the revocation of export bans of soybeans, soybean meal, soybean meal, sugar, oil, and beef. The move followed the implementation of export bans in late October in a failed attempt to safeguard Bolivia’s food security during ongoing protests and strikes over a delayed population census in the key agricultural region of Santa Cruise. Huanca warned the lifting of the export restrictions was potentially subject to change as they would be every three months. China & Indo-Pacific SITREP