BRUSSELS — The European Union agreed to impose new sanctions Monday against Belarus that could extend to the country’s airlines and further hamper its economy — the latest escalation in a fight between European leaders and the authoritarian government in Minsk.
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The union has accused Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of funneling Middle Eastern migrants to the bloc’s eastern borders and using them as political pawns. Last week, as E.U. leaders denounced Belarus’s actions, Lukashenko threatened to cut off a natural gas pipeline that runs from Russia to Europe through Belarus.
The European Union’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, told reporters Monday afternoon that officials are still finalizing the scope and details of the sanctions, but countries have agreed to allow penalties to target airlines, travel agents and others who have transported migrants from the Middle East to Belarus. The commission has said it requires legislation to enable it to sanction entities, including airlines, “involved in human trafficking.”
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“We know that people are being weaponized,” Borrell said. “It is illegal and inhumane.”
At center of Europe’s migrant crisis, tales of how Belarus clears the way, and punishes ‘pawns’ sent back.
Meanwhile, dangerous conditions persisted along the border Monday. Videos posted by the Polish government showed Belarusian border guards marching scores of migrants from a makeshift camp at the border to the official crossing point in Poland, which is closed, according to the Polish Defense Ministry.
The crisis on Belarus’s borders with Europe began in June, when Lukashenko announced that Belarus would stop policing its borders in retaliation for tough sanctions announced by the E.U. on June 2, the fourth package since October 2020.
Borrell said E.U. officials met with leaders of Middle Eastern countries in recent days and that they have mostly stopped the flow of migrants into Belarus. Many of the migrants are from Iraq’s Kurdistan region. Iraqi Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmed al-Sahaf told local media that the country “will carry out a first flight Thursday for those who wish to return” from Belarus “voluntarily.”
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Regular air links between Baghdad and Minsk have been suspended since August. Turkey banned citizens of Syria, Iraq and Yemen from flying from its airports to Belarus, while private Syrian carrier Cham Wings Airlines halted flights to Minsk on Saturday.
Belarusian state airline Belavia said Monday that it will no longer accept citizens from Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen and Syria who are traveling from Dubai, cutting the last major air route from the Middle East to Minsk.
“From the point of view of the inflow, things are becoming under control,” Borrell said early Monday. “But we have to provide humanitarian assistance to these people and prevent any type of hybrid attack again.”
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As Belarus has become increasingly isolated from the West, it has become more dependent on Russia, its most crucial ally. Lukashenko is unlikely to deliver on his threat to shut off the gas line to Europe without securing President Vladimir Putin’s approval first.
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In an interview with state television Saturday, Putin said Moscow has “absolutely nothing to do with” the border crisis and that he does not support Belarus cutting off the gas supply to Europe.
“There is nothing good about it, and I will certainly talk to him about this issue, unless he just said it in the heat of the moment,” Putin said. “It would do more damage to Europe’s energy sector and would not contribute to the development of our relations with Belarus as a transit country.”
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But Borrell said he doubted Putin’s denial of any involvement in the crisis unfolding along the Belarus border, arguing Monday that Lukashenko must have Russia’s backing if he is using such aggressive tactics.
“Frankly, I do not believe Lukashenko would be doing what he would be doing without the strong support of Russia,” Borrell said.
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Rights groups have warned that conditions at border camps where migrants have gathered are expected to become especially treacherous as the weather gets colder this week.
Lukashenko said Monday that Belarus is ready to assist migrants who wish to return to their native countries, according to state media.
“But these people, I must say, are very stubborn,” he said. “No one wants to return. And it is clear: They have nowhere to return. They do not have housing there; they understand that there is nothing there to feed their children. Moreover, some fear for their lives if they return.”
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Lukashenko added: “I want you to understand that there is very active work in that direction, to persuade people to please come back home. But nobody wants to come back.”
The videos posted by the Polish Defense Ministry showed men, women and children trudging down a muddy path as a pair of armed men in uniform looked on. Another view from a helicopter showed a large crowd gathered at the border crossing, which is currently closed. The Defense Ministry said Monday that Belarusian border guards were marching the migrants to the official Polish crossing point at Kuznica.
“The migrant march took place under the control of the Belarusian services,” the ministry tweeted. According to Polish police, roughly 3,500 migrants are on the border. Border police released video of them setting up tents and starting camp fires at the crossing point.
Migrants who have reached Poland say that Belarusian border guards regularly moved people along the fence in an attempt to pressure Poland.
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“When they wanted to bother the Polish guards, they would gather us,” said one Syrian, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear it would harm future asylum claims. “Sometimes they would gather us in groups to make demonstrations.”
Many of those who have managed to cross have recounted how Belarusian border guards actively helped them by cutting through the fence or driving them up and down the border in vans to find easier crossing points. Some say Belarusian guards beat them if they were caught and turned around by Polish forces, pushing them over the border again and causing them to be ping-ponged between the borders for weeks with little food or water.
The threat of sanctions against airlines enabling travel to Belarus has made the journey to Minsk more difficult in recent days, according to several Iraqis trying to get there. Iraq has said it will begin rescue flights for its citizens who are trapped and want to come home.
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One 28-year-old Iraqi Kurd, who spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of jeopardizing his ability to get into Europe, said he missed his first flight to Minsk last week after being held up for questions by passport control at the airport in Istanbul.
He said he tried again a few days later but by then Iraqis had been banned from flying and were denied boarding. He said he spent more than $4,000 for his flights and visa and has so far been unable to get a refund.
“I feel disappointed,” he said after buying a flight home to Iraqi Kurdistan on Monday. “Now we are back to the starting point.”
He said he was not frightened by the situation at the Belarus border, even though Polish police report deaths in the woods as temperatures drop below freezing.
“At least those people, they will find something; they have hope,” he said. “In Iraq, even if we stay here a hundred years, we will not find hope.”
Khurshudyan reported from Moscow and Morris from Berlin. Mary Ilyushina in Moscow and Quentin Ariès in Brussels contributed to this report.