Crisis on EU Border Heats Up as Poland Uses Tear Gas on Migrants

(Bloomberg) -- The months-long humanitarian crisis on the European Union’s eastern flank escalated with Belarus-backed migrants storming barbed-wire fences on the Polish border, only to be repelled by tear gas.

Videos released on Monday by the Polish government showed migrants gathering near the frontier, throwing projectiles toward Polish troops and trying to break through the makeshift barriers. The cabinet has sent more than 10,000 soldiers and police to patrol the 416km (258 mile) border with Belarus and banned independent media access to the region, triggering criticism from the EU and human-rights groups.

For months, hundreds of would-be immigrants -- mostly from the Middle East -- have been stuck on the border, with Polish soldiers blocking their advance into the EU and Belarus forces preventing their return. This is part of a “hybrid attack” meant to destabilize the EU and prevent the bloc from penalizing Belarusian authorities, according to neighbors Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, as well as Germany.  

“A coordinated attempt to massively enter Polish territory by migrants has just begun,” the Polish government said in a statement after a crisis meeting in Warsaw on Monday. 

More Incidents

The Polish opposition has repeatedly called on the cabinet to ask for help from the EU’s Frontex border agency or fellow NATO members, but the government said that local forces can adequately protect Poland. 

While border guards prevented migrants from crossing into the country near a border point at Kuznica, the government said it expects more incidents over the next hours. Some 3,000 to 4,000 migrants were gathered near the frontier and becoming more aggressive, out of more than 10,000 expected to currently be in Belarus, cabinet spokesman Piotr Muller said.  

In neighboring Lithuania, officials echoed Poland’s concerns and flagged they may put the country on a state of alert, which needs parliamentary approval. Security at detention centers that house migrants was also boosted.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis called for sanctions on all Belarus airports that assist the irregular migration flows. Poland said about 30,000 people have tried to illegally enter from Belarus, including 17,300 in October. 

‘Joint Task’

Poland’s government has been criticized by some human-right groups for pushing the migrants back into Belarus, where their fate is unclear. On Poland’s western border, German authorities saw 1,500 illegal migrants -- mainly from Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Iran and Afghanistan -- entering in September, and even more in October.

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the exiled head of Belarusian opposition, blamed President Alexander Lukashenko for the escalation.

She called the scene near the Polish border an “unprecedented provocation” aimed at punishing democratic countries and distracting their attention from what’s happening inside Belarus. 

Lukashenko is seeking to keep power while threatening neighbors with a “humanitarian catastrophe,” she said in an emailed statement. “Our joint task is to stop him.”

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