Lukashenko weaponizes migration, Kallas warns in stark accusation
Photo: Kaja Kallas at the EU-Belarus border (@kajakallas)
The Belarusian regime is using illegal migration as a weapon against Europe, particularly Lithuania. EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas has called on European countries to counter such actions by Minsk, according to a post by Kaja Kallas on the social media platform X.
Kallas stated that the regime of Belarus's self-proclaimed president Alexander Lukashenko is using illegal migration as a tool of pressure on Europe.
According to her, one direction of such activity is pressure on Lithuania.
"The sophistication of the migrant smuggling tunnels points to organised support, and are strong indications that Minsk has been lending a hand," wrote Kallas.
Kallas emphasized the need to counter the use of migration as a weapon and to support EU countries facing such actions by the Belarusian regime.
"Lithuania’s border security is a shared European responsibility. We must accelerate the Eastern Flank Watch, working closely with NATO, and keep up our sanctions pressure," noted Kallas.
Context of the statement
The problem of Minsk using migration to pressure EU countries is not new. In previous years, Lithuania, Latvia, and Poland have repeatedly accused the Belarusian authorities of organizing migrant flows to their borders.
Only in August, a third attempt to dig a tunnel from Belarus to Lithuania was recorded. In total, since the beginning of the year, the Lithuanian border guard service has recorded 12 attempts to illegally enter the country by digging underground passages from Belarusian territory.
Lithuania plans to create wetlands on the border with Belarus and Russia's Kaliningrad region - the country's Cabinet of Ministers has changed its approach to engineering measures and plans to form a new security zone there.
