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Poland's Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki criticizes Merkel's talks with dictator Lukashenko

2021-11-27T07:42:19.183Z


Chancellor Merkel telephoned the Belarusian ruler twice. Poland's Prime Minister Morawiecki thinks this is a bad idea: The dictator is abusing the contact for his own purposes.


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Poland's Prime Minister Morawiecki

Photo: INTS KALNINS / REUTERS

The Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has criticized Chancellor Angela Merkel for her talks with the Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko. In an interview with the German Press Agency, he welcomed the fact that the European Union was involved in the search for a diplomatic solution to the refugee crisis on the border between Belarus and Poland. "But when Chancellor Merkel called Mr Lukashenko, she helped legitimize his regime, while the struggle for a free Belarus has been going on for 15 months," said the head of government belonging to the national-conservative PiS party.

Merkel had phoned Lukashenko twice in mid-November and had been criticized for this at home and abroad.

Government spokesman Steffen Seibert had justified the contact with the devastating humanitarian situation for thousands of people on the border.

He also pointed out that the procedure had been coordinated with the EU Commission.

In an interview with SPIEGEL, the designated foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, signaled her fundamental approval of talks with Belarus - albeit with one important caveat: “You cannot pursue foreign policy without dialogue.

We are also talking to the Taliban to bring people to safety.

But it didn't have to be the Chancellor who called Lukashenko. "

2000 people are waiting in emergency shelters at the border

Morawiecki accused Lukashenko of misusing the phone calls for his own purposes.

“He pretended that Merkel had agreed to the transport of 2,000 migrants through a corridor to Germany and other European countries.

And that's not right. "

Lukashenko only announced on Friday that Merkel had agreed to accept the refugees.

Government spokesman Steffen Seibert had clearly denied that: "I would like to say very clearly for the Chancellor and the Federal Government that this statement is wrong," he said.

The situation in the border area between Poland and Belarus remains tense.

On Thursday alone, Poland's border guards registered at least 375 attempts by migrants to break through the border barriers from Belarus and enter the EU.

A spokeswoman for the authority said a group of 232 people damaged the border fence near the town of Czeremsza and advanced a few meters into Polish territory.

The security forces brought the group back.

Five migrants were hospitalized because of exhaustion.

From the Belarusian side it was said that around 2,000 people are still staying near the border in an emergency shelter and are hoping to continue their journey to Germany.

oka / dpa

Source: spiegel

All news articles on 2021-11-27

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