The president of United States, Joe Biden, has affirmed to feel “very worried” by the situation in the border between Poland and Belarus, and has announced contacts with the country and with Russia to address the matter.
“It is a great concern. We have communicated our concern to Russia (…) and Belarus. And we think it is a problem “, said the president in response to a question from the press, as reported by the White House.
For her part, the Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris, has criticized the “worrying activities” carried out by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, on the border with Poland in the middle of the migration crisis.
At a press conference during his visit to France, Harris has stated that the Administration of the president, Joe Biden, is “concerned” about the matter and he has confirmed that the matter has been discussed with the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, with whom he has met.
“We are watching the situation closely”, has indicated, according to information from the White House. “The eyes of the whole world and of all leaders are on what happens there”, insisted.
Thousands of migrants, mostly from Iraq and other Middle Eastern countries, have tried to cross the Belarusian border throughout this year to enter EU territory.
Lukashenko, who has been sanctioned by Brussels in connection with the controversial elections held in August 2020, has warned that Minsk will not stop the flow of migrants. This has led the Polish authorities to declare a state of emergency in the border territories and to deploy the Army in the area.
Russia and Belarus, for their part, have announced a series of “combat readiness” exercises., which has led to the deployment of paratroopers in the neighboring country. Minsk has assured, however, that the maneuvers are due to the increase in military activity on its border.
For his part, the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, affirmed that Western countries, and not Belarus, are ultimately responsible for the crisis of immigrants on the border between Belarus and Poland, pointing to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as the cause.
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Russia is a key ally of Belarus, to which the European Union has accused of mounting a “hybrid attack” by reaching thousands of immigrants, mainly from the Middle East, and push them to try to cross illegally into Poland.
As the EU prepares to impose new sanctions on Minsk, Putin told Russian state television that he believed Belarus was not to blame for the crisis.
“Let’s not forget where these crisis with migrants come from … Is Belarus a pioneer in these problems? No, the reasons were created by the Western and European countries themselves, ”Putin said.
Referring to the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, Putin noted that Iraqi Kurds and Afghans were among the migrants on the Belarusian border.
“Belarus has nothing to do with this … the fact that they came through Belarus is not surprising because Belarus … has visa-free entry for countries of origin,” Putin said.
He accused Polish forces on the Belarusian border of beating migrants and lighting lights and sirens at night near them.
“This does not fit well with the ideas of humanity that supposedly underpin all the policies of our western neighbors,” he said.
Polish police said on Saturday that the body of a young Syrian had been found in Poland, near the border with Belarus. Belarus said the number of migrants arriving at a makeshift camp on the border is increasing every day.
Putin said he expected Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and German Chancellor Angela Merkel to discuss the crisis., saying that the migrants mainly wanted to go to Germany.
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