Karins calls on international organizations to assess violations of Belarus' international obligations

  • 2021-08-22
  • LETA/TBT Staff

RIGA - Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins (New Unity) calls on international organization to assess the violations of Belarus' international obligations, LETA was informed by the State Chancellery.

Karins on Saturday participated in a video conference with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, Lithuanian PM Ingrida Simonyte and Estonian PM Kaja Kallas to discuss the situation on the European Union's border with Belarus.

During the meeting, Karins pointed out that Belarus must take responsibility for the people on its border with Latvia. "These people have come to Belarus illegally with tourist visas, and accordingly Belarus must take responsibility for them," the prime minister believes.

The Polish and Baltic prime ministers also agreed that the escalation of the situation on the EU's eastern border was part of a hybrid operation by the Belarussian regime to weaken the integrity of the EU's external border.

Karins acknowledged that the task of each country is to prevent illegal border crossings, and Latvia will continue to fulfill these responsibilities, especially considering that Latvia protects the EU's external border. At the same time, Karins expressed the need to draw the attention of international organizations to violations of Belarus' international obligations.

Following the talks, the PMs issued a statement which said that "all EU member states are obliged to protect the bloc's external borders and prevent illegal crossings."

The statement noted that it is the responsibility of Belarus to assist "foreign citizens who legally entered its territory."