Lukashenko says troops may have helped refugees reach EU
3 years, 1 month ago

Lukashenko says troops may have helped refugees reach EU

Al Jazeera  

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has said it was “absolutely possible” his forces helped people cross into the European Union, but denied inviting them to the country. Asked if Belarus was helping refugees and migrants try and cross into Poland, Lukashenko said: “I think that’s absolutely possible. “We drank from ponds… Our people are always oppressed.” Kassam Shahadah, a Syrian refugee doctor living in Poland who helps out in another hospital, said patients were terrified of being forcibly returned to Belarus. The Council of Europe human rights commissioner Dunja Mijatovic called the humanitarian situation along the border “alarming” and demanded an end to Poland’s controversial returns of migrants to Belarus.

Europe Poland Russia Border Belarus Migrants Lukashenko Polish Belarusian Minsk  refugees  poland  helped  polish  troops  lukashenko  border  told  belarus  president  migrants  reach  crisis  eu

History of this topic

Belarus sends more troops and aircraft to its border with Ukraine
4 months ago

Belarus sends more troops and aircraft to its border with Ukraine

Associated Press  

TALLINN, Estonia — Belarus has deployed aircraft and air defense troops to its border with Ukraine, a day after President Alexander Lukashenko announced he would station almost a third of the country’s military along the frontier. The Belarusian military also deployed anti-aircraft missiles and soldiers from the country’s radio-technical corps, Maj. Gen. Andrey Lukyanovich, commander of the Belarusian Air Defense …

Terrified dictator Lukashenko pleads with Putin and Zelensky to agree a peace deal - with the Belarus leader fearing Ukraine's troops now plan an incursion into his nation
4 months, 1 week ago

Terrified dictator Lukashenko pleads with Putin and Zelensky to agree a peace deal - with the Belarus leader fearing Ukraine's troops now plan an incursion into his nation

Daily Mail  

Terrified dictator Alexander Lukashenko has urged Russia and Ukraine to agree a peace deal to avoid the war spilling over into Belarus. President Lukashenko, a key ally of Vladimir Putin, said he fears Kyiv's troops are now planning an incursion into his nation after they launched a cross-border offensive in Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko …

Poland’s prime minister vows to strengthen security at EU border with Belarus
7 months, 1 week ago

Poland’s prime minister vows to strengthen security at EU border with Belarus

Associated Press  

WARSAW, Poland — Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk on Saturday traveled to the country’s border with Belarus, which is also the European Union’s external border with the autocratic state, and pledged to do more to strengthen security along its entire eastern frontier. “I know that there are more and more illegal crossings every day,” Tusk told reporters at the border, …

Poland plans to deploy 10,000 troops to its border with Belarus
1 year, 4 months ago

Poland plans to deploy 10,000 troops to its border with Belarus

Associated Press  

WARSAW, Poland — Poland intends to put 10,000 soldiers along its border with Belarus, the country’s defense minister said Thursday as Warsaw worries about the presence of Russian-linked mercenaries in Belarus and migrants trying to cross the border without authorization. Separately, the Polish military said it was searching an area near the border with Belarus for a lost fuse from …

Poland to send up to 10,000 soldiers to border with Belarus
1 year, 4 months ago

Poland to send up to 10,000 soldiers to border with Belarus

Al Jazeera  

Poland has expressed concerns about the border area since hundreds of Russia’s Wagner mercenaries arrived in Belarus last month. Poland is planning to move up to 10,000 additional troops to the border with Belarus to support the border guard force, according to Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak. Poland has worried increasingly about the border area since hundreds of battle-hardened Wagner mercenaries …

Poland to move 10,000 troops to border near Belarus as Wagner threat grows
1 year, 4 months ago

Poland to move 10,000 troops to border near Belarus as Wagner threat grows

India TV News  

The Polish Defense Minister on Thursday said that the government is planning to deploy at least 10,000 troops along its border with neighbouring Belarus to prepare for a possible altercation with Wagner mercenary forces and migants trying to illegally cross the border. Additional 2,000 troops would be sent to the border over the next two weeks to double Poland's military …

Poland and Lithuania say they fear provocations from Russia and Belarus at NATO’s eastern flank
1 year, 4 months ago

Poland and Lithuania say they fear provocations from Russia and Belarus at NATO’s eastern flank

Associated Press  

WARSAW, Poland — Polish and Lithuanian leaders held an urgent meeting Thursday in a strategically sensitive area where their NATO nations border Belarus and the Russian territory of Kaliningrad, warning that they are bracing for provocations from Moscow and Minsk in the area. Both nations on NATO’s eastern flank have increased their border security following the arrival of thousands of …

Poland’s ruling party leader vows to protect the EU border with Russia’s ally Belarus
1 year, 4 months ago

Poland’s ruling party leader vows to protect the EU border with Russia’s ally Belarus

Associated Press  

WARSAW, Poland — The European Union’s border with Russian ally Belarus has become more dangerous because of Russia’s military presence there, and securing the frontier is the Polish government’s top priority, Poland’s ruling party leader said Thursday. Jaroslaw Kaczynski, a deputy prime minister and head of the conservative Law and Justice party, made the comments while visiting the village of …

Putin, Lukashenko to meet after Russia warns about aggression against Belarus
1 year, 5 months ago

Putin, Lukashenko to meet after Russia warns about aggression against Belarus

India Today  

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko will meet on Sunday, the Kremlin said, two days after Moscow warned that any aggression against its neighbour and staunchest ally would be considered an attack on Russia. After Poland decided earlier this week to move military units closer to its border with Belarus in response to the arrival in Belarus …

Lukashenko: Belarus willing to offer more help to Russia
1 year, 10 months ago

Lukashenko: Belarus willing to offer more help to Russia

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said …

Lukashenko: Belarus willing to offer more help to Russia
1 year, 10 months ago

Lukashenko: Belarus willing to offer more help to Russia

Associated Press  

HARARE, Zimbabwe — Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said Tuesday that his country is willing to offer more assistance to close ally Russia in its war against Ukraine. “However, if our Russian brothers need help, we are always ready to offer such assistance,” he said on a state visit to the southern African nation of Zimbabwe — which is also close …

Poland sees rise of African migrants coming through Russia
2 years, 4 months ago

Poland sees rise of African migrants coming through Russia

Associated Press  

WARSAW, Poland — Polish officials on Thursday reported a change in migration patterns across the country’s border with Belarus, with Africans who first traveled to Russia making up most of those seeking to enter Poland illegally by that route instead of people from the Mideast. The government said the African migrants include individuals passing through Russia, a close ally and …

Poland completes Belarus border wall to keep asylum seekers out
2 years, 5 months ago

Poland completes Belarus border wall to keep asylum seekers out

Al Jazeera  

Poland continues to welcome millions of Ukrainians, while pushing back asylum seekers from the Middle East and Africa. Poland has completed building a new steel wall at its border with Belarus to curb the flow of undocumented asylum seekers. Belarus had never before been a key migration route into the EU – until its President Alexander Lukashenko began encouraging would-be …

Migrants camped in Belarus warehouse still hope to reach Europe
3 years ago

Migrants camped in Belarus warehouse still hope to reach Europe

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Sleeping on mattresses in a …

Germany vows solidarity with Poland in Belarus border fight
3 years ago

Germany vows solidarity with Poland in Belarus border fight

Associated Press  

WARSAW, Poland — Germany’s new foreign minister voiced solidarity Friday with Poland while also calling for humanitarian treatment of migrants and refugees stuck near the country’s border with Belarus as temperatures plummet. She expressed gratitude for the ties between Germany and Poland in light of “the uncountable Polish victims due to German actions” during World War II. In Polish and …

‘Go through,’ Lukashenko tells migrants at Belarus-Poland border
3 years ago

‘Go through,’ Lukashenko tells migrants at Belarus-Poland border

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko told …

A new humanitarian crisis unfolds at the Polish-Belarusian border
3 years, 1 month ago

A new humanitarian crisis unfolds at the Polish-Belarusian border

Al Jazeera  

For weeks, a large group of people, mostly from the Middle East, has been stranded in Belarus at a border crossing with Poland, trapped as forces from the two countries face off against each other. The West has accused Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of luring the refugees and migrants to the border to use them as pawns to destabilise the …

What next for the refugees stranded between Belarus and Poland?
3 years, 1 month ago

What next for the refugees stranded between Belarus and Poland?

Al Jazeera  

Even if Belarus and the EU reach a deal, analysts say refugees may be long left in limbo at the border or in detention centres. Although Dennison said Belarus’ approach was unlikely to work, he predicted the EU and Minsk may eventually agree on “some face-saving measure” that involve people being returned to their countries of origin, “possibly paid for …

Lukashenko warns against flare-up with Poland over border crisis
3 years, 1 month ago

Lukashenko warns against flare-up with Poland over border crisis

Al Jazeera  

Belarusian president calls for European powers to work with Minsk but Berlin rejects proposal to take in 2,000 people. President Alexander Lukashenko has said Belarus seeks no confrontation with Poland but wants European powers to work with Minsk to resolve the migration crisis along his country’s border with Poland, adding that if the crisis deteriorated “too far, war is unavoidable”. …

The victims of the Belarus border crisis were obvious. For Poland’s government, it was a useful distraction
3 years, 1 month ago

The victims of the Belarus border crisis were obvious. For Poland’s government, it was a useful distraction

CNN  

CNN — It was clear who the losers were in the dispute between Poland and Belarus. But Dempsey added: “With this whole crisis on the Belarusian-Polish border, Law and Justice now is seen as a champion of protecting Polish sovereignty and, of course, protecting Europe.” State of emergency The decision by Poland’s government – which also opposed taking in refugees …

Poland: Belarus eyes using Afghan migrants as border pawns
3 years, 1 month ago

Poland: Belarus eyes using Afghan migrants as border pawns

LA Times  

A Muslim community buried a Yemeni migrant, Mustafa Mohammed Murshed Raimi, in Bohoniki, Poland, on Sunday. Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki spoke in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, following talks with Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte about ways of solving the “very difficult situation” at the borders of EU members with Belarus. Poland’s Border Guard said Sunday it prevented a forceful …

Belarus bringing hundreds in trucks to cross into EU: Poland
3 years, 1 month ago

Belarus bringing hundreds in trucks to cross into EU: Poland

Al Jazeera  

Despite diplomatic attempts to ease the crisis, Warsaw says it has detained more people who tried to enter the EU overnight. Polish Border Guard spokeswoman Anna Michalska said on Friday that a group of 500 people had tried to enter the European Union member state on Thursday evening, aided by Belarusian authorities who had earlier cleared the main camps at …

Belarus moves migrants and refugees away from Polish border
3 years, 1 month ago

Belarus moves migrants and refugees away from Polish border

Al Jazeera  

Belarusian state media reports that migrants and refugees were moved into a heated warehouse not far from the border. A spokesperson for the Polish border guard said the camps on the frontier in western Belarus were completely empty on Thursday, which a Belarusian press officer confirmed, the Reuters news agency reported. Germany, EU reject Lukashenko proposal Meanwhile, the European Commission …

Who is benefitting from the Poland-Belarus border crisis?
3 years, 1 month ago

Who is benefitting from the Poland-Belarus border crisis?

Al Jazeera  

Over the past few weeks, tensions along the Belarusian-Polish border have escalated, as thousands of asylum seekers try to cross into Poland, a member of the European Union. The latter exists largely on paper, but it does provide for a common defence policy and free movement between the two countries, which means the Belarusian border with Poland and the two …

An Engineered Migration Crisis On The Belarus-Poland Border : Consider This from NPR : NPR
3 years, 1 month ago

An Engineered Migration Crisis On The Belarus-Poland Border : Consider This from NPR : NPR

NPR  

How A Dictator Engineered A Migration Crisis At The Belarus-Poland Border Enlarge this image toggle caption Oksana Manchuk/TASS via Getty Images Oksana Manchuk/TASS via Getty Images Migrants from faraway countries are stuck in Belarus, just across its border with Poland. EU leaders say Lukashenko and his backers in Russia are 'weaponizing' migration in retaliation for sanctions placed on Belarus last …

Belarus migrant crisis: Poland PM mulls asking NATO to hold emergency talks
3 years, 1 month ago

Belarus migrant crisis: Poland PM mulls asking NATO to hold emergency talks

India TV News  

Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia are considering asking NATO to hold emergency talks as they struggle to manage a tense migration standoff on their borders with Belarus, the Polish prime minister said on Sunday. Ahmed al-Sahhaf, the spokesman for Iraq’s Foreign Ministry, told The Associated Press on Sunday that “large groups of Iraqi migrants are being exposed to difficult humanitarian situations.” …

What’s Putin’s gain in the Belarus migrant crisis?
3 years, 1 month ago

What’s Putin’s gain in the Belarus migrant crisis?

Al Jazeera  

The Kremlin has shielded Lukashenko from Western ostracism and propped his economy with multibillion loans. He’s like a cornered rat, and Moscow is his only protector,” Pyotr Lysevich, a Belarusian graphic designer who fled to neighbouring Ukraine following last year’s opposition protests against Lukashenko’s sixth presidential victory, told Al Jazeera. Moscow removed bureaucratic hurdles for hundreds of thousands of Belarusian …

In Poland’s forests, refugees fall gravely ill amid border row
3 years, 1 month ago

In Poland’s forests, refugees fall gravely ill amid border row

Al Jazeera  

Two Syrian brothers were found shivering and barely conscious in the woods overnight, as a punishing winter looms. “We found two men in the woods, they are in a really bad condition, we couldn’t get any information out of them apart from their names, so we decided to call an ambulance,” said Agata Kołodziej, a coordinator at Fundacja Ocalenie. A …

Putin says he has 'nothing to do with' migrant crisis on Belarus-Poland border
3 years, 1 month ago

Putin says he has 'nothing to do with' migrant crisis on Belarus-Poland border

Daily Mail  

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said today Russia has nothing to do with the migrant crisis on the Belarus-Poland border. Putin said European leaders needed to talk to Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko if they want to resolve the crisis, which has left hundreds of migrants, mainly from the Middle East, trapped on the border. Russian President Vladimir Putin has said …

Russia has ‘nothing to do with’ Poland-Belarus border crisis, Putin insists
3 years, 1 month ago

Russia has ‘nothing to do with’ Poland-Belarus border crisis, Putin insists

CNN  

Kuznica, Poland CNN — Russian President Vladimir Putin insisted Saturday that Russia has “absolutely nothing to do with” the ongoing crisis at the Poland-Belarus border, where thousands of people are stranded in desperate conditions. Ramil Nasibulin/Belta/AFP/Getty Images Syrian man found dead Meanwhile, thousands of people remain stuck between Poland and Belarus in conditions the United Nations has called “catastrophic.” Desperate …

Live updates: Belarus-Poland border crisis traps thousands in ‘catastrophic’ conditions
3 years, 1 month ago

Live updates: Belarus-Poland border crisis traps thousands in ‘catastrophic’ conditions

CNN  

Migrants sit by a fire near the Poland-Belarus border on Wednesday, November 10. Here’s what else you need to know: Migrants are trapped in terrible conditions: The situation at the border remains fluid, with at least 800 people currently camped out in a makeshift camp on the Belarusian side of the closed Kuznica border crossing, Polish authorities told CNN on …

Poland-Belarus border: What you need to know about the crisis
3 years, 1 month ago

Poland-Belarus border: What you need to know about the crisis

Al Jazeera  

Thousands of migrants and refugees are stranded along the Belarus border with Poland amid a raging geopolitical row. Months earlier, the EU and the United States penalised Lukashenko’s government for cracking down on dissent after a disputed August 2020 election which handed the 67-year-old a sixth term and provoked mass anti-government protests. Angered by the toughened measures, Lukashenko hit back …

EXPLAINER: What’s behind the crisis at Belarus-Poland border
3 years, 1 month ago

EXPLAINER: What’s behind the crisis at Belarus-Poland border

Associated Press  

Thousands of migrants and refugees have flocked to Belarus’ border with Poland, hoping to get to Western Europe, Many of them are now stranded at the frontier, setting up makeshift camps as Polish security forces watch them from behind a razor-wire fence and try to prevent them from entering the country. “Such brutal tactics would make Belarus toxic and delay …

Migrant crisis on Belarus border 'could escalate into war'
3 years, 1 month ago

Migrant crisis on Belarus border 'could escalate into war'

Daily Mail  

The migrant crisis at the Belarusian border could descend into all-out war, neighbouring countries warned today as Ukraine sent 8,500 reinforcements to its frontier with the Kremlin-backed state. Temperatures are plunging below freezing at night, making camping at the frontier increasingly perilous A young boy and a group of men behind me looking stony-faced at the Polish border on Thursday …

Lukashenko threatens to cut off gas to Europe as hundreds more migrants head to Poland
3 years, 1 month ago

Lukashenko threatens to cut off gas to Europe as hundreds more migrants head to Poland

The Telegraph  

Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko has threatened to cut gas supplies to Europe, as a crisis on the border with Poland escalated with hundreds more migrants arriving in Minsk to be transported to the EU’s external frontier. Mr Lukashenko vowed a harsh response after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said there would be further sanctions against his regime. “We …

The Poland-Belarus border crisis
3 years, 1 month ago

The Poland-Belarus border crisis

CNN  

Tensions have eased on the border between Poland and Belarus, where thousands of migrants had been stranded in freezing conditions. After a violent confrontation erupted Tuesday, November 16, Belarusian border guards cleared the makeshift camps near the border by moving many of the migrants to shelter in a nearby warehouse, where they received aid from the Belarusian Red Cross, the …

EU accuses Belarus of ‘trafficking’ migrants toward border
3 years, 1 month ago

EU accuses Belarus of ‘trafficking’ migrants toward border

Associated Press  

WARSAW, Poland — European Union officials on Wednesday accused Belarus of state- As the crisis showed no sign of easing, an EU leader also said the bloc was, for the first time, considering the idea of funding the construction of a wall or some other barrier on its eastern border. Germany’s interior minister, Horst Seehofer, also accused Lukashenko of “using …

Poland-Belarus border crisis: How will the European Union react?
3 years, 1 month ago

Poland-Belarus border crisis: How will the European Union react?

The Hindu  

The European Union is once again scrambling to respond to a crisis on its external borders, what officials have called a "hybrid attack" orchestrated by the Belarusian regime to push migrants toward the bloc's external border. After the situation escalated dramatically on November 8, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: "The Belarusian authorities must understand that pressuring the …

Poland detains refugees, increases troops at Belarusian border
3 years, 1 month ago

Poland detains refugees, increases troops at Belarusian border

Al Jazeera  

Hundreds more make failed attempts to cross the Belarus-Poland frontier as the crisis escalates. Germany’s acting Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said in a statement on Wednesday that the images from the Belarusian border were “horrific”. Belarus’s foreign minister meanwhile said the EU was “provoking” the standoff on its border with Poland and added Minsk was seeking a “joint response” to …

EU accuses Belarus of ‘gangster’ approach to migrant crisis
3 years, 1 month ago

EU accuses Belarus of ‘gangster’ approach to migrant crisis

Al Jazeera  

Warsaw has warned of an imminent ‘armed escalation’ after Polish forces blocked attempted crossings amid near-freezing temperatures. The European Commission has accused the Belarusian government of tricking migrants and refugees with false promises of easy access to the European Union in what it called a “gangster-style” approach to a long-running migrant crisis. Polish President Andrzej Duda on Tuesday accused Lukashenko’s …

Germany sees spike in migrants arriving via ‘Belarus route’
3 years, 2 months ago

Germany sees spike in migrants arriving via ‘Belarus route’

Associated Press  

BERLIN — German authorities said Wednesday that the number of migrants arriving in the country via Poland and Belarus has gone up during the months that several European Union nations have accused the Belarusian government of encouraging people to cross into the EU from its territory. German federal police said more than 4,300 people illegally crossed the border from Poland …

Poland's president urges EU to stop Belarus migrant 'push'
3 years, 2 months ago

Poland's president urges EU to stop Belarus migrant 'push'

The Independent  

Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} The …

They’re trying to escape war. But these migrants to Europe are caught in another dispute
3 years, 2 months ago

They’re trying to escape war. But these migrants to Europe are caught in another dispute

LA Times  

Boshra Moallem, bottom left, looks out the window with her two sisters and brother-in-law at a refugee center in Bialystok, Poland. They told us it’s really easy to go to Europe, to find your life, to run war,” the 48-year-old said as she recovered this week in a refugee center in eastern Poland. “I didn’t imagine I would live another …

Poland, Lithuania call for EU help amid Belarus migration row
3 years, 4 months ago

Poland, Lithuania call for EU help amid Belarus migration row

Al Jazeera  

In the past two days, 133 people were stopped at the Belarusian border with Poland, compared to 122 during the whole of last year, according to Polish authorities. Belarus’s border protection agency said on Friday that it tightened control along its border with Lithuania to prevent Lithuanian authorities from sending migrants back to Belarus. “We condemn the weaponisation of irregular …

Belarus president closes some borders, puts army on alert
4 years, 3 months ago

Belarus president closes some borders, puts army on alert

Associated Press  

KYIV, Ukraine — Belarus’ president, beleaguered by six weeks of mass protests demanding his resignation, on Thursday announced he was putting troops on high alert and closing the country’s borders with Poland and Lithuania. “We are forced to withdraw troops from the streets, put the army on high alert and close the state border on the west, primarily with Lithuania …

Embattled Belarus leader jeered by workers as strikes grow
4 years, 4 months ago

Embattled Belarus leader jeered by workers as strikes grow

Live Mint  

Workers heckled and jeered President Alexander Lukashenko on Monday as he visited a factory and strikes grew across Belarus, raising the pressure on the authoritarian leader to step down after 26 years in office. On the ninth straight day of mass protests over the official results of the Aug 9 presidential election that demonstrators say was rigged, Lukashenko flew by …

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