{"id":206516,"date":"2026-10-07T13:20:52","date_gmt":"2026-10-07T10:20:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/206516\/"},"modified":"2026-10-07T13:20:54","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T10:20:54","slug":"opposition-leader-lukasenka-keeps-using-migration-to-threaten-europes-security","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/206516\/","title":{"rendered":"Opposition leader: \u0141uka\u0161enka keeps using migration to threaten Europe\u2019s security"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n\n \"\"\n
\n \n
\n (Pozirk)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

October 7, Pozirk. <\/em><\/strong>Belarusian opposition leader \u015aviat\u0142ana Cichano\u016dskaja has commented on the recent incident on the Belarusian-Latvian border involving irregular migrants and their armed escorts, describing it as a \u201cpart of a wider pattern.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The politician made the statement after Latvia\u2019s Interior Minister J\u0101nis Dombrava on October 6 accused Belarus of staging a \u201cdemonstrative and aggressive provocation\u201d at the shared border. Latvian border guards did not allow a group of 20 undocumented foreigners to enter the country irregularly, while the group\u2019s armed escorts reportedly threatened Latvian soldiers from the Belarusian side and pressured the migrants to cross.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several hours after this conflict, masked people entered Latvian territory, damaged a relay cabinet and stole surveillance cameras before retreating to Belarus, Dombrava noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Belarus regime continues to threaten Europe through migration and other hybrid attacks,\u201d Cichano\u016dskaja has said on X. \u201cThese threats will continue as long as it remains in power. A free, democratic Belarus is essential to Europe\u2019s security.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha echoed her statement, noting that the incident was \u201cpart of a broader aggressive strategy.\u201d \u201cRussia and the Belarusian regime continue to test Europe\u2019s security with an increasing frequency of sabotage acts,\u201d he stressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Belarus\u2019 western neighbors have thwarted about 14,100 irregular crossings since the start of 2026, with 11,900 attempts targeting Latvia, according to\u00a0Pozirk<\/em>\u2019s analysis of border guards\u2019 data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The flow of people eager to cross into the European Union 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 call the migration crisis a \u201chybrid attack\u201d orchestrated by Minsk and Moscow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n
\n \"\"