Thousands of people from crisis areas trusted the offer of the Belarusian ruler Lukashenko to let them move in the direction of the EU.
Now they are stuck in freezing temperatures in the border area.
Berlin / Warsaw / Minsk - President of the Bundestag Bärbel Bas has called for rapid help for the migrants on the Polish-Belarusian border.
“People are brought to the border with the EU with a false promise.
You are being abused, ”said the SPD politician to the newspapers of the Funke media group.
She warned: "We must not allow people and their fate to be used as leverage." Europe must quickly agree on how these people can be helped.
Kretschmer: Clear rules for immigration
Saxony's Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer (CDU) spoke out against accepting migrants stuck in the border area in Germany or other EU countries.
"If you wanted that, you wouldn't have to take the detour via Minsk, but could fly straight to Germany," said Kretschmer of "Bild am Sonntag".
There are clear rules on immigration.
Society has to endure the pictures of people in need at the border and help Poland secure its external EU border.
"Warsaw is doing the right thing, so we mustn't stab Poland in the back," said Kretschmer.
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From the point of view of the Greens leader Annalena Baerbock, humanitarian emergency aid is now the most urgent.
“Therefore, aid organizations must be allowed into the closed border area immediately.
I appeal to the Polish government to make this possible and to accept the EU's offers of support - also with regard to common border protection, "she told the newspaper.
Provisional camps in freezing temperatures
With temperatures around freezing point, thousands of migrants have been waiting for several days on the Belarusian side of the border in makeshift camps in the forest.
Groups have repeatedly tried to break through the barrier and illegally cross the external EU border into Poland.
The European Union accuses ruler Alexander Lukashenko of bringing people from crisis regions such as Syria or Iraq to the EU's external border in an organized manner.
One of the goals is to manipulate public opinion in the European Union and to force the West into dialogue.
It is believed that the 67-year-old wants to take revenge, among other things, for EU sanctions.
Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested a direct dialogue between Germany and authoritarian Belarus.
"From conversations with Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko and Chancellor (Angela) Merkel, I understood that they are ready to speak to each other," Putin said in an interview that was broadcast on Russian state television.
Putin also said Russia had nothing to do with the crisis in the border region.
Western security organs and secret services should take care of smuggling networks operating in Europe.
Because of the migrant crisis, Merkel and Putin spoke on the phone several times.
The Chancellor asked the Kremlin chief to intervene in the conflict.
Regarding Putin's proposal for a conversation between Merkel and Lukashenko, a spokesman for the German government said: "We generally provide information about phone calls after they have taken place."
The situation remains tense
The situation on the Polish-Belarusian border remained tense this weekend.
The spokesman for the Polish intelligence coordinator, Stanislaw Zaryn, wrote on Twitter on Saturday evening: “On the Belarusian side of the border, soldiers or officials appear who behave as if they were performing a special task that led and instructed migrants also shoot propaganda material ”.
In another tweet, Zaryn wrote that the Belarusians would help the migrants set up the camp.
He also posted pictures of men in fire helmets setting up military tents.
Poland's Defense Ministry reported increased movement of Belarusian security forces near the border town of Kuznica.
Poland imposes a state of emergency
This information cannot be verified independently because Poland has declared a state of emergency in the border region.
Journalists and helpers are not allowed in.
This also applies to the border area on the Belarusian side.
The Belarusian ruler Lukashenko ordered humanitarian aid mainly for the children of the stranded people.
The Belarusian state news agency Belta reported on Saturday that food tents should be set up.
Belta later published photos of power generators that are said to have been brought into the border area.
On Saturday evening, the Syrian airline Cham Wings announced on Twitter that it would suspend flights to the Belarusian capital Minsk.
It was too difficult to distinguish between passengers who actually wanted to go to Belarus and those who wanted to move on from there, it said.
Following threats of sanctions from the EU, Turkey had already decided not to allow citizens of several Arab countries to fly to Belarus from its national territory.
dpa