Information on the situation on the Belarusian-Polish border

Owing to some circumstances beyond our control, Belarus has recently indeed encountered an increase in the flow of migrants from conflict-affected countries who traverse through its territory on their way to the European Union countries. This transit route is neither something new nor unique while it is certainly significantly inferior in scale to the migrant flows that Greece and Italy face. As a matter of fact, the transit via Belarus used to take place at earlier times too, but Belarus and its neighbors, by working together, used to succeed in ensuring common interests in the field of regional security and border protection.

The situation has changed after the European Union refused to continue to engage with Belarus in a constructive manner. The EU’s sanctions-driven decision to terminate cooperation on international technical assistance projects, which used to serve the purpose of ensuring security on the EU’s borders with Belarus, put at risk the existing Belarusian-European agreements on border resolution issues. The EU has frozen its funding for an international technical assistance project for the construction of detention centers for illegal migrants in Belarus, as was stipulated in the Readmission Agreement and the Declaration on Partnership for Mobility. Therefore, Belarus has been deprived of necessary capacities to continue its work on addressing common illegal migration challenges at the same level of priority.

Since last April Belarus has on several occasions proposed to the European Commission to organize consultations on the above technical assistance project and, generally, on cooperation in combatting illegal migration. Unfortunately, the EU has consistently refused all our offers of a dialogue and opted instead for politicizing the problem, while applying double standards in gauging its Member States’ actions that have come under criticism from international organizations (UNHCR, IOM, OSCE, Council of Europe, etc.).

Instead of engaging in constructive cooperation, the Polish, Lithuanian and Latvian authorities, in violation of the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, have begun to forcibly expel to Belarus the persons detained on their territory. There is incontrovertible audio and video evidence of numerous cases of violence against those persons including against children and women, with some of the latter being in the last months of their pregnancy. Some Polish politicians and experts estimate that violence by Polish law enforcement agencies resulted in the death toll of some 200 people.

Belarus is also concerned about the current tense situation on its borders with Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, which has been exacerbated by Western politicians’ constant demonstrations of readiness to accept migrants on humanitarian and economic grounds, which serve only to encourage and reassure potential asylum seekers. These promises, however, turn out in reality to be an empty PR campaign.

Today, Belarus’ border troops are not in a position to stop the flow of illegal migrants on their own and without the EU’s support. As a matter of fact, they concentrate their efforts on preventing the movement of weapons and ammunition from the territory of neighboring countries, as well as on suppressing external manifestations of terrorist threats and attempts at destabilizing the situation in places replete with migrants. At the same time, Belarus has been and remains a responsible and reliable partner in the fight against illegal migration and in border protection, continuing to comply with its international obligations.

Belarus takes full responsibly in stating that the source behind the growing problem that can evolve into a humanitarian catastrophe goes far beyond Belarus’ capabilities. As a matter of fact, this source was actually created by Western countries themselves.

The United Nations Security Council’s emergency meeting on the situation with migrants on Belarus’ western borders, held on 11 November 2021 at the suggestion of some Western countries, clearly demonstrated its sponsors’ flawed tactics for resolving the problem, as these tactics overlook the obvious need to eradicate the root causes underlying the current crisis, as well as the need to hold a dialogue between the affected parties in compliance with the norms and principles of international law, which is based on respect for asylum seekers by all States Parties to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

For its part, Belarus is sparing no effort in providing support to the people who have legally arrived on its territory and are making attempts to seek asylum in the European Union countries. Pushbacks across the border will not help solve the problem.

Belarus does not hide anything, because it does not violate its international obligations. Indeed, Belarus has permitted relevant international agencies to have access to the migrants on its side of the border and continues to cooperate with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the International Organization for Migration and the Belarusian Red Cross Society with the view to providing assistance to these people in distress.

Against this background, Poland and Lithuania, allegedly in defense of European security, demonstrate total secrecy from any national monitoring and international engagement, while both have introduced a state of emergency in order to justify cruel and almost inhuman treatment of asylum seekers. These are absolutely xenophobic policies that flout not just the principles of international law, but all conceivable ethical norms.

Poland continues to mobilize military contingent and special equipment to the border, actively exacerbating the situation. Water cannons stand close to the barbed wire, a few meters away from the migrants. Those who manage to break through into the Polish territory are thrown back by Poles to Belarus by force.

Poland commits injustice not only against foreign asylum-seekers, but also against its own citizens, who try to show compassion to the destitute people. For example, the Polish NGO “Medics on the Border” reports that volunteer medics have been attacked by the Polish military and have had their cars damaged by slashing the tires and breaking the headlights.

Journalists in principle do not have access to the border, and those who do enter are at risk of being detained. However, Belarus gives access to journalists and media representatives, including foreign ones, notably CNN.

Belarus, for its part, decided to support migrants with all necessary to save their lives while awaiting Europe’s response to their call for international protection and asylum.

Food as well as hygiene kits, warm clothes and blankets, firewood and power generators have been delivered to the spontaneous migrant camp near the Polish border. Assistance continues to arrive.

Belarusian medics provide qualified, free medical care to the people stranded at the border. Measures are being taken to prevent the spread of coronavirus in places where migrants gather.

The current chaos on the border is not Belarus' fault, but the West persistently tries to persuade the world and European public otherwise. As “The Guardian” noted, Belarus became a convenient excuse to “disguise the brutality of Europe”. The facts show that it is not Belarus that “instrumentalizes” migrants, as the EU and some other states claim. It is the EU that “instrumentalizes” migrants, when it tries, through accusations against Belarus, to justify its refusal to comply with its obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention and numerous violations of European and international norms, both in the field of human rights and asylum issues.

Belarus expects the EU to act in line with the statements of the head of the European diplomacy J.Borrell, who said in an interview to “France 24” that “the migrant problem cannot be solved by building a wall on the border of Poland and Belarus”.

Belarus stands ready to work with all international partners and to put aside political differences in order to prevent the migration crisis in our region from spiraling downwards and to save human lives.

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