World is horrified by the scenes from the Croatian border PHOTO

World is horrified by the scenes from the Croatian border PHOTO

Growing number of migrants wants to enter the EU along that route.

After a few months ago, in response to Brussels' sanctions, Belarusian President Lukashenko allowed migrants from the Middle East, mainly from Syria and Iraq, to enter the country unhindered, the situation on the Polish border is becoming a new crisis hotspot.

Lukashenko believes that this is a weak point of the EU and that he will match them with such an approach.

Poland and Lithuania have imposed a state of emergency on the border, and Germany, as Bild am Sonntag writes, is launching an investigation into the involvement and responsibility of Alexander Lukashenko and the Belarusian authorities in smuggling migrants from Belarus to Germany and Poland.

According to the data of that list, from August to the end of September alone, more than four thousand migrants arrived in Germany in that direction (without any identification documents), and in the first days of October, increasing pressure is felt. Polish media report that only on Thursday and Friday, October 7 and 8, slightly less than 700 migrants were stopped at the Polish and Lithuanian borders, respectively.

Lukashenko approved the issuance of student visas for migrants from Iran and Syria who arrive in Minsk by plane, and then take them by bus to the border with Poland and Lithuania. Border officials of those countries state that Belarusian border guards then bring migrants and direct them to the other side.

Poland and Lithuania have now changed their "tactics": so far they have accommodated migrants in their refugee camps, but after such pressure on the extreme eastern borders of the EU and claims of involvement of the Belarusian authorities in provoking the migrant crisis, it was decided to return captured migrants to Belarus, which the state refused.

In recent days, Polish and Lithuanian border guards say, Belarusian border guards have been maneuvering at the border, wanting to provoke a response from Polish and Lithuanian border guards, and claim that Belarusian soldiers are throwing firecrackers and smoke bombs at the border to cause confusion and allow migrants to cross the border.

As winter approaches, Lukashenko is in a slight panic because Belarus does not have the funds to take care of the migrants, nor does he want to allocate funds for refugee camps, Jutarnji list writes. The Belarusian parliament recently made a decision to reject and will no longer accept back migrants from Poland and Lithuania, so the agreement with the EU on "readmission" is being put out of function.

Lukashenko does not intend to take care of migrants, he only "delivers" them to the border, world media report. He says that "the West is to blame for this situation because they broke up their states" and the West is "the reason why they are fleeing their homes", which states that he does not want to take care of migrants because they are the responsibility of the EU.

Lukashenko accuses Lithuania and Poland of negligence and brutality towards migrants, and at the same time some Belarusian non-governmental sources state that the situation with migrants on the Belarusian border threatens a great humanitarian crisis because there is no accommodation, no tents, no food, no medicine, no adequate medical equipment, or winter clothes for those who are waiting to break into the EU, and more and more of them are being brought in, although the passage to the European side is becoming increasingly difficult.

Lithuania has asked for help from Brussels for the construction of obstacles and fences, and their Minister of the Interior, Agnė Bilotaitė, says that it could cost as much as 500 million euros, which is a terrible expense for Lithuania. Polish and Lithuanian media, citing official sources in their governments, state that Belarusians, before sending them to the border, dope them with methadone. which was found in the blood of several migrants who ended up in hospitals there.

They also state that in recent days, several migrants have died due to freezing (temperatures are already around zero in that part of Europe), hunger, exhaustion and fatigue, and Poland and Belarus are holding each other accountable for that. Independent Belarusian analyst Vadim Mojeiko of the Belarusian Institute for Geostrategic Research told Radio Free Europe that Belarus could be the biggest victim of Lukashenko's "migrant policy" this winter and that it will come back to him like a boomerang because more migrants are arriving and the EU possesses better mechanisms to prevent their passage into its territory.

In addition, such a policy will not solve Brussels sanctions.

2.500 soldiers at the border

The Belarusian border service announced today that Polish law enforcement forces fired into the air and used batons to expel migrants to Belarus.

"The Polish border service is trying to hide the fact that it used weapons to drive away refugees and deliberately agree on the reasons for the shooting that was heard from the Belarusian side," the Belarusian Border Committee stated on the Telegram channel.

The Belarusian side adds that their border guards heard a shooting on Polish territory on October 8, and when they arrived at the scene of the incident, they saw a large group of refugees near the border with Poland.

The migrants were surrounded by Polish soldiers. "The response to the refugees' legal requests for protection was shootings in the air and batons. The Polish border service failed to push migrants back to Belarus only thanks to the timely arrival of the Belarusian border service," the Committee stated.

A spokeswoman for the Polish border service, Anna Michalska, said today that Polish border guards stopped illegal migrants from entering Poland by force.

According to her, the incidents happened over the weekend, when large groups of illegal migrants, with 90 to 130 people, broke down the interstate fence and encountered Polish soldiers while trying to enter the country. Some managed to break into Poland, but were quickly pushed back to the border.

She added that about 2.500 soldiers were sent to the border to prevent the illegal entry of migrants, as well as that the plan is to increase the number of Polish patrols.