Migrant Surge, Poland Considers Border With Belarus Closed

Illustration of illegal migrants entering the border of a country by sea. (Unsplash-Jemetlene R)

JAKARTA - Poland is considering completely closing the border with Belarus. This is because the surge in migrants from third countries entering Poland is suspected to have crossed Belarus.

Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said there was one crossing of the passenger border and cargo between Belarus and Poland at this time which was of concern to his side.

"As a result of the Belarusian actions, we are considering the possibility of closing all border crossings," Sikorski said in an appearance on TVN channel, Saturday, June 23, quoted from Sputnik.

He added that the authorities were studying whether the move would affect the Polish economy.

Recently, Polish border guards reported almost daily on the aggressive behavior of migrants behind an iron fence on the border with Belarus.

An average of 200 people try to cross the border fence every day. Throwing stones and twigs at Polish border guards is one of the most common problems.

The problem occurred in mid-2021, when tens of thousands of migrants clustered on the border between Belarus and Poland, as well as neighboring Latvian and Lithuanian countries, in an attempt to enter the European Union.

Polish authorities have tightened border controls, deployed troops, and accused Belarus of masterminding a migrant crisis.

The Belarusian government rejected the allegations, and accused the Polish government of abusing the narrative of the migrant crisis to aggressively push migrants into Belarusian territory.