Lithuanian President Summons State Defense Council Due To Influx Of Illegal Migrants Through Belarus

• 9.07.2021, 12:57

Since January, almost 20 times more illegal migrants have been detained in the country than in the entire 2020.

The meeting of the State Defense Council has been convened by Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda due to the problems faced by the republic in connection with the influx of illegal migrants from Asian countries entering from the territory of Belarus. This was reported by TASS with a reference to the press-center of the Head of the Lithuanian state.

"The meeting will take place on Monday. It will be devoted to border protection and the development of a strategy for managing the migration crisis," the message says.

The Heads of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee for National Security and Defense, the Head of the State Border Guard Service under the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Lithuania, and the Chairman of the Association of Lithuanian Local Governments are summoned to the meeting.

The work of the State Defense Council, which includes the Prime Minister, the Head of the military department, the army commander and the Speaker of the Parliament, is chaired by the President of Lithuania.

Since the beginning of the year, 1,546 illegal migrants have been detained in Lithuania, mainly from Asian countries, who entered the republic from the territory of Belarus. This is almost 20 times more than in the entire 2020. On July 2, the Cabinet of Ministers declared a state of emergency in the country in connection with the migration crisis.

At the end of May, Lukashenka announced that he would not interfere with the transfer of drugs and illegal migrants to EU countries.