June 27, Pozirk. Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia called on the European Union to construct a defense line along the border with Russia and Belarus to “protect the EU from military threats and other harmful activities from Moscow,” Reuters reports.
In a joint letter, the four leaders listed military and nonmilitary threats, including disinformation, cyberattacks, economic pressure and the ongoing illegal migration crisis.
“Extraordinary measures” will require “a dedicated EU action to support it both politically and financially,” Reuters cited the letter.
The cost of erecting protections along the 700 km EU border with Russia and Belarus is estimated at €2.5 billion.
The EU summit opening today in Brussels is expected to discuss the proposal, which may be implemented in cooperation with NATO.
The migration crisis at the Belarus-EU border started in spring 2021 after Alaksandar Łukašenka, angered by EU sanctions, had indicated that Minsk would not prevent migrants from Africa and Asia from using Belarus as a route to the EU.
Belarus’ western neighbors call the migration crisis a “hybrid attack” orchestrated by Minsk and Moscow.
Tensions on the border escalated this spring with the spike in illegal border crossings.
Polish border guards also recorded over 50 attacks by people trying to cross the border illegally. One of them resulted in the death of Polish serviceman Mateusz Sitek, stabbed at the border with Belarus.
Two weeks ago, Warsaw enacted a 90-day border area entry ban.
