Belarus to shut border to Lithuania to stop migrants returning

MINSK, Aug 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Belarus plans to close parts of the country’s border with Lithuania in order to stop migrants who have crossed into Lithuania from coming back.

The move comes after Belarus appeared to allow migrants, mainly from war-torn countries, to enter Lithuania, a member of the European Union, in what is believed to be a retaliation for sanctions imposed on Minsk by the bloc.

“From today, no one will be allowed to cross the border from any side, neither from the south nor from the west,” President Alexander Lukashenko said, according to state agency Belta.

The EU accuses Belarus of deliberately allowing migrants to cross its border towards the European Union, after Lukashenko openly threatened to allow refugees from countries such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan to enter the bloc.

Several hundred migrants have entered Lithuania from Belarus in recent weeks. This year so far, some 3,500 people have been apprehended crossing the 680-kilometre border with Belarus. Most have applied for asylum.

EU border agency Frontex has sent additional personnel to Lithuania in recent weeks, in an attempt to prevent further illegal border crossings.

The spat comes after a year of protests in Belarus, unleashed when large parts of society disputed Lukashenko’s election win.

The EU imposed sanctions on Belarus for human rights abuses in response to peaceful demonstrations and the violent repression of civil society.

Lithuania is one of the biggest supporters of the Belarusian democracy movement and has long been a refuge for Belarusian opposition figures.

Lukashenko’s latest move is seen as an attempt to stop the EU from returning the migrants sent from Belarus into the bloc.

It would be a “threat” to Belarus if migrants were collected at the crossing points and then “deported to the territory of Belarus under threat of armed force,” Lukashenko said.

The EU has not suggested it would respond to the events in this manner. — NNN-AGENCIES