Lithuania He stated that there is work on the fence. about 550 kilometers covering the border Belarus It ended at a time when Vilnius denounced an increase in border crossings allegedly driven by the Belarusian president, Alexander LukashenkoIn retaliation for European Union sanctions.
“The physical barrier will help border guards against illegal immigration more effective“, Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte defended in a statement. This is a four-meter high fence crowned with barbed wire.
Lithuania has a border with Belarus of about 680 kilometers, of which more than a hundred passes through rivers and lakes. In recent months, attempts to pass have increased so much that record numbers have been reached, with 124 last week and 125 this Monday.
These latest figures are reminiscent of those recorded at the height of the migration crisis last year. Immigrants are people whose nationality is from Middle Eastern countries, for example Syria or Afghanistanas well as others from Africa.
From mid 2021, Lithuania tightened its immigration policies due to the massive influx of people. Those trying to pass through Belarus. For the Vilnius Government, Minsk used immigration to put pressure on European officials in retaliation for the sanctions imposed on it.