Migrants have the opportunity to spend the night in the heat
“The Polish border is closed. The Belarusian authorities are lying to you. Return to Minsk. Don’t take any pills from Belarusian soldiers, “everyone who approaches the Polish-Belarusian border receives such messages. They are being deported by the Polish authorities to encourage migrants to return home.
Latvian Radio correspondent Artyom Konohov’s report from Poland
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However, attempts to cross the border continue. The Polish authorities report that two groups of people who tried to enter the country illegally have been stopped at night.
During the day, the situation began to change, and several videos show people who have been at the border so far leaving under the supervision of the Belarusian authorities.
It later became known that buses were also transported to the border, taking at least some of the visitors to the nearby transport and logistics center. The Belarussian authorities have set up a temporary accommodation center there. As a result, people who have spent several days or even weeks in the open air have the opportunity to sleep in the heat.
Migrant families receive a warm meal in the premises set aside for them on the Belarusian side of the Polish border
Photo: Maxim Guchek / BelTA / TASS
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There, they can receive warm clothes donated as part of humanitarian aid. Belarusian media also report that migrants have received blankets, food and also medical care.
Repatriation flights will begin
The first repatriation flight, organized by the Iraqi government in cooperation with the European Union’s agency Frontex, will take place on Thursday. It is not yet clear how many migrants will be willing to use it.
Many of these people borrowed large sums of money or sold all their belongings to pay for their journey to Europe.
People who have so far been living in refugee camps in Jordan or Lebanon are also unlikely to return.
Polish Defense Minister Marshal Blaschak warned on Wednesday that the crisis on the Belarusian border could continue for months.
Belarus’s official news agency Belta said on Tuesday that the country’s authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko had managed to agree with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the next steps to resolve the situation. Officials of the European Union and representatives of international refugee agencies are expected to play a leading role in this process. Belarus will also nominate its negotiators.
The issue that many migrants want to get to Germany will also be addressed during the talks, Belta reports. Several Polish and Lithuanian politicians have condemned Merkel’s talks with Lukashenko, saying that in this way Europe is implicitly acknowledging that Lukashenko is a legitimate leader of Belarus. Merkel’s representatives reject this, saying that she had coordinated her actions with the European Union.
“In order to improve the alarming humanitarian situation for thousands of people, it makes sense to talk to those who can change the situation in Minsk, even if it is a leader whose legitimacy, like all other European countries, is not recognized by Germany,” said Stephen Zeibert, Merkel’s spokesman.
“The Chancellor therefore spoke by telephone with Mr Lukashenko to find solutions, such as access for the UN Refugee Agency. She agreed with the European Commission and informed key partners in the region beforehand.”
Belarus suspends oil supplies to Poland
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabriel Landsberg warns that talking to Lukashenko about the migrant crisis he has caused is dangerous, as such contacts could lead to forced talks or ultimatums.
Belarus has meanwhile restricted oil supplies to Poland through the Friendship pipeline. It connects oil fields in Russia with several European countries. The official justification is unforeseen repairs lasting three days. However, it is suspected that this may be related to Minsk’s attempts to put pressure on Poland.
The opportunities for journalists to report on the crisis on the Polish-Belarusian border are very limited. Those on the Polish side have been denied access to border areas, and the border guards and police have been reluctant to comment. Belarus, on the other hand, mostly does not allow journalists from the West.
This has put the media in an unpleasant situation, where, on the one hand, they have to rely on media reports loyal to the Lukashenko regime to find out about what is happening on the Belarusian side, but on the other hand, the Polish side is spreading information mainly accepted by the authorities.
CONTEXT:
In the summer of 2021 the number of migrants increased significantly, which is trying to enter the territory of Latvia, Lithuania and Poland illegally from Belarus. Most migrants are arrived from Iraq.
Officials in the Baltic States and Poland pointed out that the Belarusian authorities deliberately do not obstruct the crossing of the borderto punish these countries for supporting the Belarusian opposition and sanctions against Alexander Lukashenko’s regime.
The European Union will do so described as the deployment of hybrid warfare and promises to help strengthen the EU’s external border.
On November 8, a large group of migrants gathered at the Belarusian border with Poland, trying to enter the territory of the European Union, but Poland refuses to allow these people because they believe that they are not refugees, but “tourists” who have come to Belarus voluntarily.
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