Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Poland-Belarus: Putin behind migrant crisis at border, says Morawiecki

Poland-Belarus: Putin behind migrant crisis at border, says Morawiecki

Poland's prime minister accused the Russian president of orchestrating the influx of migrants attempting to cross from Belarus, in a parliamentary debate on Tuesday.

Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has accused the Russian President Vladimir Putin of orchestrating the migration crisis on the country's border with Belarus.

"(Belarusian leader) Lukashenko is the executor of the latest assault, but this assault has a sponsor who is to be found in Moscow, and this sponsor is President Putin," Morawiecki said during an emergency debate in the Polish parliament.

The prime minister described the situation at the border as part of an effort by Russia to disrupt a region that it controlled during the Soviet era.

"The security of our eastern border is being brutally violated. This is the first such situation in 30 years when we can say that the integrity of our borders is being tested,” he said.

The Russian and Belarusian leaders spoke by phone about the tensions at the border between Poland and Belarus, Moscow and Minsk said on Tuesday.

Poland reinforced its border with Belarus with more riot police, a day after groups tried to charge through a barbed wire fence. Thousands of migrants and refugees remain massed in freezing cold weather Poland's eastern frontier, on the doorstep of the European Union.

Meanwhile on Wednesday Belarusian authorities accused Poland of abusing four migrants at the border.

"In view of the numerous injuries on the migrants' bodies, Polish law enforcement officers treated them brutally and chased them over the barbed wire fence at the border with Belarus," the Belarusian Border Guard Service said.

Moscow's role under scrutiny


The European Union said on Tuesday that it is monitoring 20 countries, including Russia, for their possible role in the transport of migrants towards Belarus, which Brussels accuses of orchestrating the influx of migrants on its external borders.

Measures have been taken against 13 nations from where flights are said to have carried migrants to Minsk.

A spokesman for the EU's chief diplomat Josep Borrell said Moscow was on its "radar", and Brussels was evaluating information and data on flights from Russia and its possible implication.

Acknowledging the phone call between Lukashenko and Putin, a statement from the Kremlin simply referred to "an exchange of views on the refugee situation".

Earlier, spokesman Dmitri Peskov said Moscow was "very worried", describing the situation as "a real problem which concerns Belarus and Poland".

Lukashenko's office elaborated further, saying the circumstances at the border had featured prominently in the conversation between the two leaders, "as well as the harsh actions of the Polish party towards civilians".

Minsk has tried to shift the blame onto Poland, describing as "particularly worrying" the deployment of Polish security forces at the border. In an interview on Tuesday, Lukashenko blamed Poland for flouting its humanitarian obligations, accusing Poland of conducting a "war" against the migrants.

Russia is Belarus' main ally and Lukashenko has relied on Putin for political and financial support in the face of increased pressure from the EU and the West over last year's disputed election, human rights and more recently the migration crisis.

The sudden surge in numbers and attempted crossings into Poland on Monday brought international condemnation of Belarus. The EU accused Lukashenko of a "cynical" exploitation of migrants, orchestrating the influx in revenge for European sanctions imposed on his autocratic regime after the brutal repression of opposition in the country.

The EU believes Belarus has been flying people from Middle Eastern countries and dumping them at EU borders, or facilitating their journeys -- exploiting them in a "cynical" manner to destabilise the bloc in retaliation for Western sanctions.

The past few days represent a major escalation in tensions between Minsk and its neighbours. For months migrants have been arriving at the country's border not just with Poland -- but also with Lithuania and to a lesser extent, Latvia -- the three EU states on the bloc's eastern border with Belarus.

Michel demands 'rapid' solution on border financing


European Council President Charles Michel on Tuesday demanded a "rapid" solution on EU border financing amid what he called Belarus' "weaponising" of migrants at its eastern frontier.

Michel has called on the other member states to support Poland, Latvia and Lithuania.

"Polish and Baltic borders are EU borders. One for all and all for one," the Belgian said on Tuesday during a speech marking the anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

Twelve EU countries - including Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, and also Denmark, Austria and Hungary - demanded at the beginning of October that physical barriers at the borders be at least partially financed from EU funds.

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, however, rejected this demand.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Japanese Technology Firm Fujitsu Launches Advanced Artificial Intelligence Tool for Corporate Disclosures
South Africa Officially Launches Nationwide Campaign for Highly Contested Local Government Elections
United Kingdom Commits Additional Funding for Unexploded Ordnance Clearance in Laos
Singapore Announces Stringent New Greenhouse Gas Regulations for Commercial Cooling Systems
Cambodia and Thailand Hold High-Level Border Security Talks at United Nations Headquarters
Myanmar Military Government and China Sign Major Agreement to Upgrade Media and Cultural Cooperation
Knife Attack at Swiss Train Station Leaves Three Injured in Suspected Act of Domestic Terrorism
Transnational Extortion Gang Threatens Canadian Police With Army of One Thousand Armed Operatives
Australia Imposes Forty-Two-Day Quarantine on Cruise Ship Passengers Following Deadly Hantavirus Outbreak
International Monetary Fund Unlocks Seven Hundred Million United States Dollars for Sri Lanka Following Economic Reforms
Australia Launches Record One Point Four Billion Dollar Lawsuit Against Chemical Giant 3M Over Contamination
China and Canada Foreign Ministers Meet in Ottawa in Effort to Stabilize Strained Diplomatic Ties
Indonesia Demands Urgent United Nations Security Council Reform Amid Escalating Global Conflicts
Extreme Weather Patterns Trigger Severe Drought in Madagascar and Destructive Flooding in East Africa
Indian State of Karnataka Faces Political Upheaval as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah Abruptly Resigns
Philippines and Japan Reaffirm Defense Ties as Crucial for Indo-Pacific Regional Stability
Norway Joins French Nuclear Deterrence Initiative in Major Shift for European Security Architecture
Global Critical Mineral Alliances Expand as Western Nations Move to Counter Chinese Supply Dominance
United States Imposes Fifty Percent Tariffs on Mexican Steel and Aluminum Ahead of Trade Pact Review
European Union and China Head Toward Major Trade Conflict Over Clean Technology Exports
United States Economic Growth Severely Downgraded to One Point Six Percent as Stagflation Fears Mount
World Health Organization Warns Central African Ebola Epidemic is Outpacing Containment Efforts
United States Treasury Department Conditions Sanctions Relief on Reopening of the Strait of Hormuz
Iranian Air Defenses Intercept and Destroy United States Military Drone Over Bushehr Province
Iranian Armed Forces Launch Ballistic Missiles Toward Unspecified Targets Prompting Regional Condemnation
United Nations Secretary-General Warns Global Order Facing Highest Level of Conflict Since 1945
Israel Issues Sweeping Evacuation Orders in Southern Lebanon Amid Intensified Hezbollah Conflict
Russia Announces Systemic Military Strikes Targeting Ukrainian Defense and Energy Infrastructure
United States and Iranian Negotiators Reach Draft Agreement to Extend Ceasefire and Resume Nuclear Talks
United Nations Security Council Deeply Divided Over United States Capture of Venezuelan President
US and Iran Exchange Direct Military Strikes Amid Fragile Gulf Ceasefire
World Health Organization Warns of Catastrophic Ebola Outbreak in DR Congo
Russia Threatens New Wave of Strikes on Ukrainian Infrastructure and Embassies
Scientists Warn Atlantic Ocean Currents Could Collapse Faster Than Projected
Anthropic Reaches $900 Billion Valuation in Historic AI Funding Round
Washington Imposes Crippling Sanctions on Iranian Maritime Authority
Japan and the Philippines Initiate Strategic Intelligence-Sharing Pact
Microsoft Deploys Autonomous Computer-Using AI Agents to Global Markets
Anthropic Secures $45 Billion Compute Infrastructure Agreement With SpaceX
U.S. Director of National Intelligence Resigns Amid Administration Shakeup
Micron Technology Crosses Trillion-Dollar Valuation Amid Unprecedented Hardware Demand
Canada and Germany Finalize Historic Long-Term LNG Export Agreement
China Expands International Travel Restrictions on Domestic AI Researchers
Japan Approves Sweeping Overhaul of National Intelligence Apparatus
Global Airlines Scramble Logistics as Middle East Airspace Remains Fractured
Japan's Naphtha Imports Plunge 47 Percent Amid Strait of Hormuz Closure
Global Crude Prices Retreat Below $96 as Gulf Tensions Momentarily Ease
Generative AI Outperforms Human Baselines in Landmark Global Creativity Study
NASA Partners With Private Aerospace to Unveil Permanent Lunar Base Architecture
South Korean Equity Markets Surge on Next-Generation Memory Chip Frenzy
×