Lukashenka Did Not Allow Humanitarian Convoy to Visit Migrants

Transport stood at the Polish-Belarusian border for a day.

“Illegal migration can be an element of the Russian-Belarusian maneuvers West-2021.” This was stated by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland Martin Przydacz. Meanwhile, the Belarusian authorities officially refused the humanitarian aid that Poland sent to the border, Belsat reports.

Water from the river, a piece of bread, and damp earth instead of a bed - this is how migrants describe their life on the Belarusian-Polish border. Official Minsk refused to accept the humanitarian convoy sent by Warsaw. Transport stood at the border for a day. He had to drive up to the migrants from the Belarusian side.

“Indeed, there is a refusal. To our surprise, we received a complete refusal to accept help from the Polish side. It was aid for humanitarian purposes,” says Mateusz Morawiecki, Prime Minister of Poland.

Now there are 24 migrants on the Polish-Belarusian border near Bialystok. These are data from the Polish authorities. Warsaw emphasizes that foreigners remain on the territory of Belarus, and Polish border guards and military do not allow them to enter the territory of the country. Migrants, in turn, say that they are refugees from Iraq and Afghanistan and want to get asylum in Poland, but they are not allowed to do so. The question remains: how did the outsiders manage to approach the border unnoticed by the Belarusian border guards? Warsaw has no doubts: Minsk was involved, and Lukashenka is playing with human lives and is trying to blackmail the West with the migration crisis.

“We are dealing with a specially prepared action by the Lukashenka regime. We protect our border properly,” says Mateusz Morawiecki, Prime Minister of Poland.

Brussels expresses support for Warsaw. European Commission spokesman Christian Wiegand stressed that the EU will not "put up with attempts to provoke illegal migration to its territory." However, voices of criticism are also heard.

“I understand that this situation is the result of the actions of Belarus, which encourages people to cross the border, putting them in a vulnerable position, creating problems for the host state. I strongly condemn such actions. But Poland must not allow innocent people to fall victim to such actions,” said Dunja Mijatovic, EU Commissioner for Human Rights.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees also appealed to Poland to accept a group of migrants. Representatives of Polish humanitarian organizations and the opposition are also dissatisfied with the actions of the authorities. They demand to accept migrants or at least allow them to transfer food and things to them. The military does not let anyone in, communication with foreigners takes place using a megaphone. One member of the Sejm even tried to break through the cordons.

“We have chocolate, bananas, nuts here, let's try to convey all this,” said Franciszek Sterczewski, a member of the Polish Sejm.

After much bickering, the parliamentarian tried to run to the group of migrants but was stopped. Meanwhile, the head of the Polish government chancellery, Michal Dworczyk, said on Wednesday that, in this situation, accepting dozens of migrants in Poland could lead to the fact that the Belarusian authorities are already using thousands of unfortunates in their political game.