{"id":186318,"date":"2026-05-05T12:26:39","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T09:26:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/186318\/"},"modified":"2026-05-05T12:26:41","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T09:26:41","slug":"latvia-under-migration-pressure-for-41-days","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/186318\/","title":{"rendered":"Latvia under migration pressure for 41 days"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

May<\/strong> 5, <\/strong>Pozirk<\/em><\/strong>.<\/em><\/strong> <\/strong>Latvia has reported attempts by undocumented migrants to cross from Belarus for 41 days in a row.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The country\u2019s State Border Guard recorded 2,097 attempts between March 25 and May 4 (an average of 51 a day), including 216 incidents since May 1. That was a rise of 63.6 percent month on month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since the start of the year, Latvia accounted for 71.8 percent of total incidents reported by Belarus\u2019 EU neighbors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, Poland has not reported any incidents for 18 days and Lithuania, for two days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Poland\u2019s recent respite may be linked to political dynamics involving Minsk, which appears capable of redirecting migration pressure across the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Poland recorded a sharp decline in irregular migration after reopening the Ku\u017anica Bia\u0142ostocka\u2013Bruzhi and Bobrowniki\u2013Bierastavica crossings to traffic on November 17, in a move hailed by Minsk as \u201cconstructive.\u201d In late April, Minsk finally released and handed over to Poland journalist and Polish minority activist Andrej Pa\u010dobut (Andrzej Poczobut), as well as Polish monk Grzegorz Gawe\u0142, as part of a five-for-five exchange at the Belarusian-Polish border.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In all, the EU neighbors registered 3,119 irregular border crossing attempts this year compared with as many as 9,485 in the same period last year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The flow of people desperate to cross into the EU surged in spring 2021 after Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka, angered by EU sanctions, had indicated that Minsk would not prevent asylum seekers from Africa and Asia from using Belarus as a route to the EU.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In June 2021, the Belarusian government suspended a readmission agreement with the EU in response to sanctions that followed the forced landing of a Ryanair flight in Minsk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Latvia, Lithuania and Poland called the migration crisis a \u201chybrid attack\u201d orchestrated by Minsk and Moscow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n
\n \"\"