Estonia Strengthens Border Security Amid Influx Of Migrnats Into Lithuania - Official

HELSINKI (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th July, 2021) Estonia is augmenting its border security with Russia and Latvia over the influx of illegal migrants in Lithuania, Egert Belitsev, the deputy director general for border management at the Police and Border Guard board (PPA), said on Sunday.

Speaking to Estonian broadcaster ERR, the official noted that the border security authorities do not believe that the Lithuanian scenario will repeat itself in Estonia. Nevertheless, if the migration flow shifts north, the undocumented migrants may attempt to pass through the Baltic country.

"We are building up our infrastructure on the eastern border [with Russia], which is also one of the signs that entering Estonia would be as difficult as possible. In other words, not only this area, but actually, the entire set of monitoring equipment, which will give us a complete picture of what is happening on the border," Belitsev said, adding that the country has already stepped up patrols on the eastern border and the border with Latvia.

Earlier in the month, Lithuania declared an emergency over an overflow of illegal migrants from Belarus, many of them Iraqis, Iranians and Syrians. Vilnius has accused Belarus of using migration as a tool to get back at Vilnius for antagonizing Minsk. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, for his part, has said that Minsk is unable to stem migration to the European Union due to Western sanctions.

After Lithuania asked the European Union and neighboring countries for help, Estonia sent ten PPA officers, along with vehicles, drones and other border protection equipment, to assist the Lithuanian border service.