a The State Border Guard would decide to come with a call for a declaration of a state of emergency on the Latvian-Belarusian border, then the Minister of the Interior Marija Golubeva (AP) would address the government with a corresponding call.
Golubeva confirmed this to LETA, answering questions related to the information provided by the border guard, that this week 28 immigrants who have crossed the border illegally have already been detained for illegal crossing of the Latvian-Belarusian border.
The politician explained that he is in contact with the border guards about the current situation three to four times a day. The Minister of the Interior emphasized that the situation at the border is being controlled.
According to Golubeva, a state of emergency should be declared if the number of people crossing the border illegally “increased dramatically”, which has not happened at the moment. The declaration of a state of emergency is related to the number of places in detention centers occupied, as well as to the ability to cope with border management, the Minister of the Interior explained.
Asked about sending additional people in charge of guarding the Latvian-Belarusian border, Golubeva confirmed that the border guard uses the human resources available to it to strengthen border protection. The Minister of the Interior also pointed out that according to the request sent various days ago to the Minister of Defense Artis Pabriks (AP), the National Armed Forces (NAF) will also send additional representatives of the army to the border.
Considering that a certain number of deported people could be restricted access information, therefore the Border Guard and the NAF should be asked about it in more detail, the politician added.
Golubeva stressed that due to the increase in the number of border crossers, the construction of the fence on the border with Belarus will be carried out much faster than previously planned. Work on this issue should start already this year, but a more specific deadline depends on how quickly the Cabinet of Ministers will make decisions on the use of resources and how soon the Saeima will make the necessary changes in the law.
The Minister of the Interior drew attention to the fact that, if necessary, it is possible to install a temporary fence at the border, which would be very expensive.
It has already been reported that the State Border Guard has detained 28 illegal immigrants this week for illegal crossing of the Latvian-Belarusian border.
This year, eight cases of illegal crossing of the Latvian-Belarusian state border have been detected and a total of 55 third-country nationals have been detained – 51 citizens of Iraq, one Syrian, one Sri Lankan, one Indian and one Belarusian.
Assessing the situation in Lithuania, as well as taking into account the growing risks on the Latvian-Belarusian state border, enhanced border surveillance had already been introduced and the resources of the State Border Guard and the Army for green border surveillance had been mobilized. Support is also provided by four experts from the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Krišjānis Kariņš (JV) and Minister of the Interior Golubeva announced that Latvia plans to accelerate the construction of the Latvian-Belarusian border infrastructure and attract additional army forces to its security.
This week, Pabriks instructed the NAF to expand the support provided to the border guard since July 12. The army is tasked with ensuring the protection of the country’s eastern border by deploying additional surveillance systems, providing unmanned aerial vehicles, seconding additional personnel, and conducting regular military exercises.
It has also been reported that the Golubeva Action Plan for Strengthening the Security of the Latvian State Border includes ten points, one of which envisages providing a possible crisis solution with quick-to-deploy temporary solutions, namely, high-security barbed wire.
If the number of illegal border violators increases dramatically, then the government can declare a state of emergency in part of the territory of Augšdaugava and Krāslava counties, and the necessary legal regime will enter into force immediately, but the Saeima decision will need to approve it, Golubeva plan.
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