Tensions escalate in EU border crisis
Poland uses water cannons, tear gas against migrants
WARSAW, Poland — Polish forces at the border with Belarus used water cannons and tear gas Tuesday against stone-throwing migrants, as Warsaw accused Belarusian authorities of giving smoke grenades and other weapons to those trying to cross the frontier.
The events marked an escalation in the tense crisis on the European Union’s eastern border, where the West has accused President Alexander Lukashenko of using the migrants as pawns to destabilize the 27-nation bloc in retaliation for its sanctions on his authoritarian regime. Belarus denies orchestrating the crisis.
The Poland Border Guard agency posted video on Twitter showing water being sprayed across the border at a group of migrants who threw debris, and the Defense Ministry also said tear gas was used against the attackers. Polish authorities said nine of its forces were injured.
Some 2,000 migrants were at the frontier in makeshift camps in the freezing weather, but only about 100 were believed involved in attacking the Polish forces at the crossing near Kuznica, said Border Guard spokeswoman Anna Michalska. The crossing has been closed since last week.
Police spokesman Mariusz Ciarka later said the migrants there had been “pacified.” He added that the attackers had been given smoke grenades by the Belarusians and threw stones at the Polish police, with the events monitored by the Belarusian services using a drone. The Polish Defense Ministry also said Belarus gave some migrants flash-bang grenades.
Belarus’ State Border Guard Committee and the Foreign Ministry said they would investigate Poland’s actions.
“These are considered violent actions against individuals who are on the territory of another country,” committee spokesman Anton Bychkovsky was quoted as saying by Belarus’ state news agency Belta.
Lukashenko on Tuesday said his government has deported about 5,000 illegal migrants from Belarus this fall.
“We’re not collecting refugees all over the world and bringing them to Belarus, as Poland has informed the European Union. Those who come to Belarus legally, we accept here, the same way any other country would. Those who violate the law, even in the slightest, (we
put) on a plane and send back (home),” he told a government meeting dedicated to the situation at the border.
Lukashenko also said he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed Monday by phone that neither Belarus, nor the EU would benefit from an escalation of the crisis. He said he proposed a resolution but did not elaborate, adding that Merkel is discussing it with other EU leaders.
Some of the migrants have children with them at the border in their desperate bid to reach the EU. Most are fleeing conflict, poverty and instability in the Middle East and elsewhere. At least 11 deaths have been reported in recent weeks as the weather has turned colder and they are trapped in the dank forest between the forces of
the two countries.
While some have managed to get into the EU before Poland, Lithuania and Latvia bolstered their borders, passage appears to be much harder now.
Poland’s Defense Ministry said Belarusian forces tried to destroy border fences, and its Interior Ministry posted video apparently showing migrants trying to tear one down. It said the migrants are using the smoke grenades and similar weapons given to them by Belarusian troops who no longer seem to be trying to conceal their involvement.
Poland has taken a tough stand against the migrants’ illegal entry, reinforcing the border with riot police and troops, rolling out razor wire, and making plans to build a tall steel barrier. The Polish approach has largely met with approval from other EU nations, who want to stop another wave of migration.
But Poland also has been criticized by human rights groups and others for pushing migrants back into Belarus and not allowing them to apply for asylum.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Poland’s actions “violate all conceivable norms of international humanitarian law.”Warsaw says Moscow bears some responsibility for the border crisis, given its strong support for Belarus. The Russian government has denied responsibility.
Meanwhile, cybersecurity researchers say they have uncovered evidence that Belarus has been involved in a hacking and disinformation campaign against Eastern European NATO
members since 2016 that aimed to sow discord, steal confidential information and spy on dissidents.
Tuesday’s report by the U.S. cybersecurity firm Mandiant appears to mark the first time Belarus has been blamed in the campaign known as Ghostwriter. European Union members have said they suspected involvement by Belarus’ close ally Russia, and Poland has directly accused Moscow.
While Mandiant said it had compelling forensic evidence that Belarus was involved in the hacking whose targets have also included German lawmakers, it said it had no direct proof of Russian participation, though that doesn’t rule it out and attributing cyberoperations can be difficult.