Disinfo: Brussels blamed Minsk for the migration crisis, but the West is the only responsible

Summary

Brussels blamed Minsk for the migration crisis, but the West is the only responsible. The problem of irregular migratory flows at the EU-Belarus border is in fact due to the Western policies, including decades of military interventions in the Middle East and North Africa.

Disproof

Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative accusing the West of causing migration crisis on the border of Belarus with Lithuania, Latvia and Poland.

In 2021, Lithuania, Poland and Latvia faced an influx of irregular migrants from Belarus. Earlier, Belarus had ended cooperation with the EU to stem illegal migration. This was Lukashenka's answer to the European Union sanctions on the political regime of Belarus (read more about sanctions here). Lukashenka's regime is using migrants from the Middle East as "political and hybrid" tools against Lithuania and the entire EU.

Investigative journalists have proven that some migrants arrive in Belarus by commercial flights from Baghdad to Minsk. Information gathered also suggests that migrants are regularly transported by bus to the Belarusian-Lithuanian border. More information about Lukashenka's role in the organisation of the current migration crisis can be found here and here.

On 15 November 2021, the EU broadened the scope for sanctions to tackle hybrid attacks and instrumentalisation of migrants. The EU will now be able to target individuals and entities organising or contributing to activities by the Lukashenka regime that facilitate the illegal crossing of the EU's external borders. This came amid the growing instrumentalisation of migration by the Belarusian authorities.

Read other disinformation cases about the ongoing migration crisis on the Belarusian border claiming that Lithuanian border guards use violence against migrants, including abandoning pregnant women, that migrants in Lithuania are kept in concentration camps in unsanitary conditions, and that the West is responsible for the migration crisis on EU-Belarus borders.

Go to search

publication/media

it.sputniknews.com (Archived)
  • Reported in: Issue 267
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 14/11/2021
  • Article language(s) Italian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Belarus, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia
  • Keywords: Migration crisis, migration, Hybrid war, West, Middle East and North Africa
see more

Disinfo: Minsk and Moscow are fully open to a civilised dialogue with Warsaw

The crisis on the Polish-Belarusian border revealed the complete bankruptcy of the Polish eastern policy. For many months, Warsaw has been receiving public signals from the leading Belarusian and Russian politicians about their readiness for dialogue. Paradoxically, the situation on the Polish-Belarusian border is an attempt of Minsk to force Poland into this dialogue. For example, recently, President Lukashenka sent his congratulations to Poland on the occasion of Independence Day. Moscow has repeated many times that it wants to have a civilised conversation with Warsaw. There are serious contradictions in the reaction of Poland to this situation. On the one hand, Poland makes absurd accusations against Russia for its contribution to the migration crisis. On the other hand, some Polish officials signal their readiness to talk about the Polish-Belarusian crisis with Moscow.

Nov 13, 2021
Disproof

Recurring disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin outlets about the migration crisis on the EU-Belarus borders.

The claim that Poland does not want to solve the migration crisis on the border with Belarus through diplomatic tools is ungrounded. The pro-Kremlin media regularly accuse Poland of its deliberate worsening of relations with Russia and unwillingness to improve relations with Moscow. Current issues in Polish-Russian relations are directly linked to Russia’s actions (violations of international law, historical revisionism, ungrounded expulsion of a Polish diplomat, to name a few).

Disinfo: Warsaw is silent to the Minsk's appeals due to its involvement in the anti-Belarusian coup

The goals of Minsk [in the border crisis] are simple and not very demanding. Belarus wants the European Union to recognise its authorities, stop organising the coup d’etat and restore normal economic relations. Otherwise, it is able to plunge Europe into a serious humanitarian crisis, which was triggered by the aggressive Western wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Syria.

Why do the Polish authorities remain deaf to the Belarusian appeals? The implementation of the Belarusian demands will not harm Poland in any way. The answer to this question may be the Polish involvement in the unsuccessful coup in Belarus. The information war against Belarus is waged not only by propagandists from the Belsat TV channel but also by a number of institutions such as the “Belarusian House” and the association of the former Belarusian servicemen [ByPol]. The Polish authorities support all these forces, despite the fact that they do not bring any benefits.

Nov 13, 2021
Disproof

Recurring disinformation narrative from pro-Kremlin outlets about the migration situation on the EU-Belarus borders.

The claims that Poland was involved in the anti-Belarusian “coup” and it wages an “information war” against Belarus are ungrounded. The protests in Belarus erupted to contest the results of the presidential election on 9 August 2020, which were not monitored by independent experts, and are largely considered fraudulent by both international observers and a big part of the Belarusian society.

Disinfo: The West is the cause for the crisis on EU-Belarus borders

Among other things, the acute migration crisis on the Belarusian-Polish border was addressed. [...] The West is the cause of the current crisis. The government in Minsk was not the "first to discover these problems", which were of a political, military and economic nature. Many Western countries had participated in the military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Nov 13, 2021
Disproof

A recurring narrative accusing the West of the aggressive behaviour towards Belarus and promoting a distorted picture of the migration crisis on the EU-Belarus border.

There is plenty of evidence that the Belarusian authorities have instigated the ongoing migration crisis in Lithuania, Poland and Latvia. Lukashenka's regime is using migrants from the Middle East as "political and hybrid" tools against Lithuania and the entire EU. Commissioner Ylva Johansson said, inter alia: "The authoritarian regime in Belarus is exploiting human beings for political reasons: this is completely unacceptable."