The aggressive actions of the illegitimate Alexander Lukashenko regime have reached an unprecedented level. They provoke the crisis at the external borders of the EU, threaten the security of the entire region and deliberately endanger the lives of vulnerable people. It constitutes a breach of international law, political commitments and a disregard for fundamental human rights. This is expressed by Ināra Mūrniece, Speaker of the Saeima, Jüri Ratas, President of the Riigikogu of the Republic of Estonia, Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen, Speaker of the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania, and Elżbieta Witek, Marshal of the Sejm of the Republic of Poland, in a joint statement issued on Tuesday, 23 November.
Due to this situation, there is an urgent need to adapt the EU acquis to the new realities in order to ensure strong protection of the EU external border and provide effective measures to prevent illegal border crossings. Adequate financial support is needed from the EU for this purpose.
The Parliament Speakers strongly condemn the continued state-sponsored instrumentalisation of irregular migration, artificially created by the Belarusian regime as part of hybrid operations against Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, and the EU for political purposes.
The Statement calls upon the international community to take the necessary steps to stop the authorities in Belarus from forcing migrants to illegally cross the EU border and to hold the Belarus regime accountable for these violations.
The actions of the illegitimate Lukashenko regime, which result in preventing the delivery of humanitarian aid offered by neighbouring countries to migrants gathered and held by the Lukashenka regime in areas adjacent to the border, are also condemned in the Statement.
The Parliament Speakers of the Baltic States and Poland call for prompt implementation of the new package of sanctions agreed upon during the meeting of Foreign Ministers of the Member States of the European Union, targeting persons and entities involved in and contributing to activities of the Lukashenko regime aimed at facilitating illegal crossing of the external borders of the Union. The instrumentalisation of migrants for political purposes cannot be tolerated. According to the Statement, if this situation continues, the European Union should consider further restrictive measures against the Belarusian regime in line with its gradual approach.
The responsibility for normalizing the situation at the border rests squarely with the illegitimate regime of Alexander Lukashenko, while the EU and its Member States should continue to be guided by the joint decisions and political stance adopted by the European Council and the Foreign Affairs Council, as set out in the Statement.
Prepared by Saeima Press Service