Belarus is increasingly trying to destabilize the Baltic states, especially in Lithuania, where the largest number of illegal border crossings from Belarusian territory have been recorded in the past six months, Ukrainian news agency Ukrinform reported, citing a publication on the “Telegram“ by the Ukrainian Center for Countering Disinformation, BTA reported.
“Belarus is stepping up efforts to destabilize the Baltic states. In October, Lithuania recorded the largest number of attempts at illegal crossing from Belarusian territory in the past six months – 275. Almost half of them were in the last five days of the month,” the center, which is part of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, said in a statement.
The increase in the number of crossing attempts was recorded immediately after Vilnius closed several border crossings in response to massive takeoffs of drones with smuggled cigarettes from Belarus. The Lithuanian government called these cases a hybrid attack combining economic, informational and migration pressure.
Over the past ten months, Lithuanian border guards have prevented more than 41 thousand illegal crossings, which is 20% more than last year.
This shows that Minsk is deliberately using migrants as a tool to put pressure on the EU, Ukrinform reports. A similar tactic was used by the Belarusian regime in 2021, when it organized the transfer of migrants from the Middle East to provoke an artificial migration crisis.
The Center for Countering Disinformation said that Belarus' actions fully coincide with Russia's interests. The current increase in Belarusian activity is part of a coordinated, multi-layered hybrid war that Minsk and Moscow are waging against Europe, the Ukrainian organization said.