Polish Border Guard Says Russian Citizens Present Among Migrants On Border With Belarus

Russian citizens coming from the country's North Caucasus republic of Chechnya are present among migrants trying to illegally enter Poland from Belarus, Anna Michalska, a spokeswoman for the Polish Border Guard, said on Tuesday

WARSAW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 07th December, 2021) Russian citizens coming from the country's North Caucasus republic of Chechnya are present among migrants trying to illegally enter Poland from Belarus, Anna Michalska, a spokeswoman for the Polish Border Guard, said on Tuesday.

According to Michalska, on Tuesday the Polish authorities registered two illegal attempts to cross the border by migrants from Belarus in the Polish village of Czeremcha. Border guards detained 30 people, who were then brought to the border lines and given information about the imperative of leaving the territory of Poland.

"Interestingly, there were mostly Iraqi citizens among them, but there were also Russian citizens of Chechen nationality," Michalska said.

She also noted that the Polish border services have detained people from Chechnya before.

Michalska added that groups of illegal migrants gathered at the Belarus border usually consist of Iraqi, Afghan and Syrian citizens.

Since the beginning of the year, Polish border guards have recorded about 40,000 attempts to illegally cross the border from Belarus, which is ten times more than in 2020.

In November, several thousand migrants camped on the Polish-Belarusian border in the hope of forcing their way into the European Union. The Polish authorities strengthened border security and thwarted attempts by illegal migrants to enter the country, using teargas and barbed wire.

Warsaw blames Minsk for the current migration crisis. Belarus rejects all allegations.