The self-proclaimed President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko is again using his territory for the transit of illegal immigrants from Africa, the Middle East and Afghanistan to Poland.
This was reported by the Foreign Intelligence Service of Ukraine (FIS).
According to intelligence, part of the flows arrive from Libya directly or through russia, which indicates coordination between Minsk and Moscow.
"The scenario repeats the crisis of 2021, when the Lukashenko regime organized a mass influx of migrants to the EU borders, trying to exchange a decrease in tension for the lifting of sanctions. This blackmail did not work: the restrictions only intensified, and Minsk's diplomatic isolation deepened," the report says.
The intelligence agency noted that the Belarusian dictator "acts flexibly": he continues to earn money from the transit of migrants, but at the same time avoids open escalation "so as not to lose the remnants of political contacts in Europe, in particular with Hungary, which consistently opposes migration."
"The worsening migration situation on the eastern borders of the EU increases the risks for European security and creates additional opportunities for maneuvering by authoritarian regimes. Lukashenko, despite his reputation as putin's satellite, retains autonomy in matters of tactics - and once again demonstrates his readiness to use it for political pressure on the West," the Foreign Intelligence believes.
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