EU countries accuse Lukashenko: 10,000 refugees between Belarus and Poland

The conflict between Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and the European Union (EU) is entering the next round.

According to estimates by the Polish border guards, there are currently more than 10,000 refugees in Belarus who are hoping to cross into the EU.

Warsaw - At the weekend, the Polish border guards noticed the increasing activity of the Belarusian side.

That said, the commander of the Polish Border Guard, Major General Tomasz Praga, on Monday after information of the German Press Agency, referring to a report by the Polish news agency

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According to Praga, the regime of ruler Alexander Lukashenko brought the refugees into the country in order to bring them to the borders of Poland, Lithuania and Latvia after a short stay.

Lukashenko accused by EU countries: 10,000 refugees between Belarus and Poland

In May Lukashenko announced that he would no longer prevent migrants from continuing to travel to the EU - in response to tightened Western sanctions against Belarus.

The governments in Poland, Lithuania and Latvia again accused the Belarusian government of organizing refugees to the EU's external border.

In August, the Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and the Prime Ministers of the three Baltic States Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania published a joint statement: “We, the Prime Ministers of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Poland, are concerned about the situation in Lithuania, Latvia and Poland on the border with Belarus.

It is clear that the current crisis was planned and systematically organized by the Lukashenko regime. "

Survey: Germany or France as a destination for the refugees

Last Saturday, according to the Polish border guards, 215 people were prevented from illegally crossing the border, on Sunday another 152 and on Monday morning 59 people.

Many of them would have Germany or France as their destination.

This emerged from surveys of the refugees.

Despite the corona pandemic, more people were on the run in 2020 than ever before.

The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) spoke of 82.4 million - four percent more than in 2019 and twice as many as ten years ago.

"Behind every number there is a person, a story of displacement, dispossession and suffering," said the High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi.