A 31-year-old woman, who wrote her name in Arabic as Lilouz and said she was from Dohuk in Iraq, told Reuters she had walked for six hours through the night with her five children. In June, the Court of Justice of the EU ruled that the Lithuanian law on asylum and migration, which limited peoples ability to make asylum applications under the state of emergency and provided for the automatic detention of asylum seekers, was incompatible with EU law. Latvia, along with Lithuania and Poland, has seen a surge of migrants arriving from Belarus in recent months, with European officials accusing Minsk of orchestrating the illegal crossings in retaliation for sanctions over a crackdown by authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka on the country's pro-democracy movement following a disputed presidential election in August 2020. Poland, meanwhile, recorded 491 asylum seekers from Belarus in the first week of August, nine times more than the previous week, after it gave refuge to Tsimanouskaya, who refused to return home from the Tokyo Games. Latvia has detained 283 individuals for illegally crossing from Belarus since 6 August, authorities said, bringing the total for the year to 343. Latvian State Border Guard are on high alert to prevent any future instances of illegal border crossing incidents. The Belarusian officers then move several meters closer, crossing the border. Approximately 16,000 attempts to illegally cross the Polish-Belarusian border have been stopped since August, Poland's border agency has said. On the anniversary of his contested reelection, the EU has also threatened further sanctions. Turkeys president, Recep Tayyip Erdoan, has previously been open in demanding cash to prevent tens of thousands of refugees trying to reach Europe. A spokesperson for the UN refugee agency in the Nordics and Baltics told Reuters: "We are deeply concerned about the reports on pushbacks.". Lithuania passes new asylum laws to deter migrants, Germany's Maas says Lukashenko is holding Belarus 'hostage', Sudan updates: Blinken calls leaders, urges cease-fire, Sudan: Military and militia driven by hunger for power, Sudan: Catastrophe was foreseeable, says expert, Millions of Kenyans indebted to mobile app lenders, North Korean tactical nuclear exercises heighten tensions, Danny Rhl: 'Bold decisions are important to me', March of the Living: Remembrance in Auschwitz. Latvia has given refugees and migrants a cruel ultimatum: accept to return voluntarily to their country, or remain stranded at the border facing detention, unlawful returns and torture. In 1995, out of an estimated 30,000 illegal border crossings, 7,511 persons were detained. There are stifferpenaltiesfor smuggling peopleacross the border. "This aggressive behavioris unacceptable and amounts to a direct attack aimed at destabilizing and pressurizing the EU," they said in a statement after the meeting. To date this year 4,026 people have illegally crossed from Belarus into Lithuania, a country of 2.8 million, compared with 74 in all of 2020, the Interior Ministry said last week. The . The state border guard chief, Guntis. On Thursday, April 13, 44 persons were stopped from illegally crossing the border between Latvia and Belarus, while a total - 1555 persons have been stopped this year. Foreign citizen travelling in transit through the territory of the Republic of Belarus, enters the Republic of Belarus and departures from the Republic of Belarus on a valid passport or other replacing document, suitable for traveling abroad and issued by the relevant authority of the state of citizenship or habitual residence of the foreigner or an international organization, with transit visa or another visa of the Republic of Belarus, granting a foreigner the right to cross the state border of the Republic of Belarus, unless otherwise provided by international treaties of the Republic of Belarus. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. Latvian guards stopped the migrants at Robeznieki at around 3 a.m. as the group made its way through a field carrying only small bags and backpacks. Latvian Minister of the Defence Artis Pabriks previously ordered National Armed Forces to expand support provided to the State Border Guard. The Lithuania-Belarus frontier poses a serious security threat for the 27-nation bloc, which has become a witness to state-sponsored weaponisation of illegal migration from Belarus, Slovenia said in a letter sent to EU diplomats. Last week Poland deployed 2,500 more troops to the border, bringing to 10,000 the number of soldiers reinforcing. +375 17 265 90 08, Official web portal of the President of the Republic of Belarus, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus, Website of Belarus Embassy in the Russian Federation, State Customs authorities of the Republic of Belarus, National Legal Internet Portal of the Republic of Belarus, The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Belarus, State Border Committee of the Republic of Belarus, If you find a mistake, please highlight it, Main tasks and functions of the State Border Committee, List of administrative procedures performed by the State Border Committee of the Republic of Belarus, Visa-free entry to Belarus for citizens of Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, Facilitation of Mutual Travel by Residents of Border Territories of the Republic of Belarus and the Latvian Republic, For organizations conducting international passenger transportation, List of the settlements located in the border zone, Rules of entry to border zone for foreign citizens, Rules for staying in border line for foreign citizens, Personnel of the International Cooperation Department, List of the countries whose citizens enter the Republic of Belarus without a visa. 12/01/2021. bringing the total number of attempted crossings during the crisis to 1,005. pro-democracy movement following a disputed presidential election in August 2020. Considering the increasing illegal migration pressure on Latvian-Belarusian border, the State Border Guard has taken numerous measures. This service is free of charge and will be available to foreigners who arrived in Belarus through checkpoints on the Belarusian border. Authorities in the Baltic EU countries have accused . for the prepaid contracts; refill your account, make a deposit for the on-board device usage, etc. Under the state of emergency, Latvian border guards, in cooperation with unidentified commandos, the army and the police, repeatedly subjected people to summary, unlawful and violent forced returns. Poland said it was noticing a similar rise in migrant crossings on its border with Belarusin what a government official called a Belarusian "hybrid war.". Consular fees for consideration of applications for entry visas of the Republic of Belarus at the National Airport of Minsk, Other information of interest can be obtained by contacting your consular offices located in the Republic of Belarus, Grounds for refusal and prohibition of entry to the Republic of Belarus. Others were coerced or misled into accepting voluntary returns in detention centres or police stations. Baltic News Network uses cookies to customize content for readers and analyse information flow. Along with Poland, the two Baltic states accuse Alexander Lukashenko of hybrid warfare. The decree would allow guards to use physical force if necessary to send migrants back across the border. The Belarusian Foreign Ministry did not respond to a Reuters request for comment. the driver of the vehicle must have an insurance certificate valid on the territory of the Republic of Belarus and confirming civil liability insurance in a member state of the "Green card" system; Participation in the road traffic in the Republic of Belarus of a vehicle, registered abroad without the effective agreement of compulsory insurance of civil liability of owners of vehicles, results in administrative liability in the amount of 20 base values in accordance with Paragraph 5 of article 18.19 of the Code. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Poland, Lithuania and Latvia say there's been a surge in the number of people trying. EU Condemns Belarus's 'Aggressive Behavior' At Border. There have been regular attempts by migrants to cross the border with. Latvia and Lithuaniahad already raised the alarm earlier this year about Belarus giving free passage to migrants in May. After signing the contract, it is necessary to obtain the appropriate on-board device and fix it on the windshield in accordance with the supplied instruction. Lukashenko last week also told officials to tighten the countrys border, effectively trapping the migrants in a no-mans land once theyre turned back from the EU. Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko "has lost all political and moral legitimacy," said Germany's foreign minister. [emailprotected], Another 35 illegal immigrants caught Sunday, Russian citizen sentenced to 2.5 years for people smuggling, Brexit meant exit from Latvia for 60 Britons last year, Border Guard chief: Belarus has tried to arm illegal migrants, Half of immigrants to Latvia in 2021 were returning Latvians, 740 Ukrainians found refuge in Latvia in February, Sharp drop in number of births so far this year, Russians start taking Latvian language exams, Rga considers stricter rules on street busking, Latvian citizen wanted for warfare against Ukraine, Latvia's mandatory defense service law officially proclaimed, Teachers' strike set to go ahead if wages don't rise, Government indulging in 'political theater' over teacher strike, says union, Mrniece talks HIMARS with Austin at the Pentagon, Dance troupes across Latvia continue festival preparations, Plns confident he can attract support in presidential vote, Latvian project 'She Rebuilds the World' makes an impact in Africa, National Alliance supports potential second term for President Levits, Grants to be available to replace old heating systems, Police to keep an eye on speeding this week in Latvia, Growing share of higher education in employment in Latvia, For Stability! The UNHCR was sending a mission to Latvia to discuss the situation and ensure that its response was in line with its international obligations and European law," the spokesperson said. Visiting the Belarusian-Lithuanian border last week, the EU home affairs commissioner, Ylva Johansson, accused Lukashenko of a very severe aggressive act that was intended to provoke. For violation of rules of staying in the Republic of Belarus (stay in Belarus without a Belarusian visa, migration card, passport or other document for travel abroad, violation of the registration procedure) foreign citizens are subjected to administrative responsibility (a warning or a fine in the amount of 50 base values or deportation) in accordance with the Article 24.35 of the Code of Administrative Offences of January 6, 2021 91-3. In October alone, Poland recorded 15,000 attempted illegal border crossings. "We have informed Belarus that the incident has been recorded, and it is our deep concern because we consider it another provocation, a further escalation of an already tense situation," Landsbergis said. Border control authorities do not provide to the foreign citizens information concerning the reason for the refusal of entry into the Republic of Belarus. of Foreigners Temporarily Staying in the Republic of Belarus. This would allow member states facing situations of instrumentalization as experienced by Latvia to derogate from their obligations under EU asylum and migration law. Latvia has declared a state of emergency and Lithuania is mulling a razor-wire fence to stop record numbers of migrants crossing their borders from Belarus, amid claims Minsk is using the arrivals as leverage on EU states to reverse sanctions. Country/Region of Manufacture. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. 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