According to the Ministers of the Interior of the EU Member States, Belarus abuses illegal migrants for political purposes. In a joint statement, the Ministers condemned Minsk's "aggressive behaviour" in helping illegal migrants cross the borders with neighbouring countries Lithuania, Latvia and Poland. "This is unacceptable and amounts to a direct attack aimed at destabilizing and pressurizing the EU", the member states declared at the end of a special meeting on the situation at Belarus' borders with the three EU countries.
The European Union accuses the President of Belarus, Aleksandr Lukashenko, of "aggressive behaviour" and condemns his attempts to put pressure on the EU by helping migrants to enter the EU.
"The European Union will need to further consider its response to these situations in order to increase its effectiveness and to deter any future attempts to instrumentalise illegal migration in this manner," the statement said.
The countries have also agreed that the EU will provide additional border guards and money if necessary to stem the flow of migrants.
EU Member State Lithuania has been flooded with migrants since the regime in Belarus has not obstructed and even encouraged them to cross the border into the EU. Latvia and Poland are also seeing increasing numbers of illegal immigrants coming from Belarus. On Wednesday (18 August), the Polish government said that it had sent 900 soldiers to the border. Lithuania is building a four-metre high fence with barbed wire over 500 kilometres along the border to stop the illegal immigrants. The EU has increased the presence of coastal and border guard Frontex in the area.
