OSCE Chair Expresses Support To Poland On Migration Crisis On Border With Belarus

Mohammad Ali (@ChaudhryMAli88) Published November 19, 2021 | 06:53 PM

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) stands behind Poland in the current migration crisis on the border between Belarus and the European Union, Swedish Foreign Minister and OSCE Chair Ann Linde said on Friday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th November, 2021) The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) stands behind Poland in the current migration crisis on the border between Belarus and the European Union, Swedish Foreign Minister and OSCE Chair Ann Linde said on Friday.

"Now there has been some good information the last day. But of course, the migrants that Belarus has used for political purposes is not acceptable. And we stand behind Poland," she said at a joint press conference after a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

She added that the situation on the border has affected stability in the region and must be resolved immediately.

Since July, Lithuania, Latvia and Poland have reported an increase in the number of illegal migrants crossing from neighboring Belarus. They accuse Minsk of using the migration crisis as revenge on the European Union for sanctions that it imposed earlier this year on Belarusian officials over alleged human rights violations.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said that his country no longer has the capacity to prevent the movement of migrants toward the EU due to the sanctions.

In September, Poland declared an emergency in the regions bordering Belarus. To bolster security, the Polish authorities sent military personnel and additional police forces to the border. Barbed wire fences are being erected at various sites.

Last week, the number of migrants massed on the Polish-Belarusian border surpassed 2,000. They camped near the Bruzgi checkpoint in the Grodno region of Belarus. Poland refused to let them through. On Tuesday, the migrants tried to force their way onto European Union territory, clashing with Polish security forces. Polish security stopped them using tear gas and water cannons.