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In the midst of repression by the Polish Army against migrants who tried to cross into the European Union, both countries dismissed the possibility of an armed confrontation as a result of tensions over the migration crisis. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko contacted Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
The situation that arose on the border of Poland and Belarus, where there are hundreds of migrants trying to enter the European Union, broke out in recent days.
However, in the last hours, both countries have stated that they have no intention of a major conflict. “Armed war with Belarus is not on the horizon,” Polish Vice President Jaroslaw Kaczynski said Tuesday, also saying that Lukashenko “will not dare to do anything else at this time.”
On the Belarusian side, who spoke to refer to the delicate context was Lukashenko himself. After his dialogue with the German Chancellor, he stressed that they are not interested in worsening the migration crisis. “As much as someone wanted to escalate to an open confrontation, we cannot allow it,” he said.
However, the Belarusian leader criticized the military deployment from the Polish side, noting that his neighbors mobilized 20,000 armed men while Belarus did not deploy “not a single company, not a single platoon of soldiers.” And he assured that his country has “plans to face any aggression.”
From Warsaw they slipped that they plan to impose new sanctions against Belarus, whose government they accuse of initiating and promoting the current wave of migration to Poland, Latvia and Lithuania to destabilize the European Union and as a form of pressure for Brussels to lift the sanctions imposed on the country .
Dozens of people from Asian countries such as Syria and Iraq have moved with the intention of entering Western Europe, but Poland closed the border to prevent them from entering. With freezing temperatures and precarious housing and health situations, about a dozen civilians have already died.
Lukashenko contacted Merkel and Putin to find a solution
The President of Belarus held a meeting with the German Chancellor to seek a resolution to the migratory conflict that takes place on the shared border with Poland, where thousands of people who intend to enter the European Union remain.
According to the official Belarusian agency, BELTA, Lukashenko proposed a settlement of the situation to the German president, to which Merkel asked for time to talk with the other members of the EU.
After a 50-minute phone call on Monday, the Belarusian head of state confirmed that he is waiting for a second chance to speak with Merkel and thus move forward.
The president said that the most serious problem at the moment is the situation of the 2,100 people who are at the border crossing with Poland. “I told Merkel that if we don’t save those people, we will lose: Belarus and, above all, the European Union, did not allow refugees to enter,” he said.
Meanwhile, BELTA also reported on dialogues between Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin, a conversation in which they addressed the border situation.
“A series of representatives of countries of the European Union, including France and Germany, have addressed President Putin. They ask us to help and we are ready to give it,” Serguei Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister, told a press conference.
Polish security forces cracked down on migrants
This Tuesday there were 224 new attempts to cross the border illegally by people who are on the Belarusian side. However, a strong confrontation in the Bruzgui-Kuznica pass had the Polish security forces as the protagonist, which used water cannons, tear gas and stun grenades to repel the migrants.
Minutes later, the situation dissolved and the migrants returned to the camp they set up on Belarusian soil. According to calculations by the Government of Poland, the number of people in the settlements increased considerably and is now around 2,000.
Dziękuję żołnierzom za powstrzymanie dzisiejszego szturmu. Dzięki Wam Polska wciąż jest bezpieczna. Wszyscy żołnierze służący obecnie na granicy otrzymają specjalne nagrody finansowe. Jesteśmy Wam wdzięczni! https://t.co/35lYRxrJbw
– Mariusz Błaszczak (@mblaszczak) November 16, 2021
The Polish Defense Ministry accused “Belarusian services” of providing equipment – such as smoke grenades – to migrants so they can try to cross the Kuznica border. Mariusz Blaszczak, Polish Defense Minister, congratulated the Polish Army for its repressive response.
The one who publicly repudiated this situation was Sergei Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister. The official asked that “common sense on the Polish side of the border prevail” and described the repression of migrants as a “violation of all imaginable norms of humanitarian law”.
Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said Monday that they need concrete measures “and the commitment of the whole alliance.” He slipped that he can submit a request to NATO to request military assistance in that area.
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