New migration route via Belarus tops agenda of EU leaders meeting
October 23, 2021, 3:59 am

New migration route via Belarus tops agenda of EU leaders meeting

Belarus-Minsk-Victory square/Pixabay

The Xinhua reported, an emerging route where migrants enter the European Union (EU) via Belarus has aroused concerns among the bloc's heads of state and government and topped the agenda of their meeting on Friday.

"This took up quite some time which is not surprising," said German Chancellor Angela Merkel, referring to the discussion of migration on Friday morning, the second day of the autumn EU summit in Brussels.

The Xinhua said that the Baltic countries have reported cases of what they called "illegal migration" as well as their effort to put an end to the trend, including the establishment of physical border fences.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda on Friday pushed for a "physical fence" to control the border with Belarus, which it claimed was "weaponizing" migration. He said the European Council had to take "decisive action" to deal with the crisis.

He told reporters as he arrived at the meeting avenue: "Nobody knows what will happen tomorrow. Maybe there will be three, four, five thousand migrants staying at the border at the same time or trying to cross the border in different places."

Lithuania was one of 12 countries which are pressing for EU funds to finance border projects to stop migrants entering through Belarus. The others are Austria, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Poland, and Slovakia.

But European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen was unequivocal with the EU leaders that no European funds will be used to cover expenses related to placing barbed wire and walls to protect EU borders.

She said: "I was very clear that there is a longstanding view in the European Commission and in the European Parliament that there will be no funding of barbed wire and walls."

"This is an instrumentalisation of migration -- to put political pressure on the European Union. We will keep up the pressure on the Lukashenko regime," she said, adding that more sanctions were being explored.

On Monday, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said the bloc was ready to implement sanctions against the national airline of Belarus in a bid to partially curb the flow of migrants.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has earlier denied any wrong doings concerning immigrants leaving the Middle East and entering the EU via Belarus.

The Belarusian Telegraph Agency reported in May that the conflicts in Libya, Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan contributed to the development of terrorism.

Lukashenko was quoted as saying: "Thus they flocked to Europe: some with revenge on their minds, others to find jobs."

Source: xinhua

South Africa will tell rich countries to do more at COP26 summit UK experts: Mutation of Delta variant may be more transmissible

Upon arriving to participate in the summit of the European Political Community, which includes around forty heads of state in Budapest, he said, "I look forward to sitting with the elected U.S. president and seeing how we will collectively ensure we meet challenges, including the threats from Russia and North Korea." He also noted that the strengthening of ties between Russia and North Korea poses a threat to the United States as well, according to reports from Agence France-Presse.

Before Trump's victory, Rutte expressed confidence that a united Washington would remain part of the defensive alliance, even if Trump became the 47th president of the United States. In an interview with German public broadcaster ZDF last Monday night, he stated that both Republicans and Democrats understand that NATO serves not only the security of Europe but also that of America. He added that both candidates are aware that the security of the United States is closely tied to NATO.

On Wednesday, NATO congratulated Trump on his victory but did not address the Ukrainian issue.

It is noteworthy that the relationship between the elected U.S. president and the defense alliance was not the best during his first term in the White House. Trump criticized NATO member states multiple times and even hinted at withdrawing from the alliance unless they increased their financial contributions.

Additionally, the issue of the Russian-Ukrainian war is one of the matters that complicate relations between the two sides, especially since Trump has repeatedly stated that he can end this ongoing conflict, which began in 2022, quickly. He implied that he had a peace plan between Kyiv and Moscow, while his vice president, JD Vance, revealed aspects of that plan, which stipulated Ukraine's commitment not to join NATO, thereby sending reassuring signals to the Russians.

Furthermore, many NATO member states in Europe fear that Trump might halt military aid to Ukraine after he previously criticized the U.S. for pouring funds into supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.