Lithuania asks Iraq, Turkey to step up control of people departing via airports

  • 2021-06-17
  • BNS/TBT Staff

VILNIUS – Lithuania has asked Iraqi and Turkish governments to step up control of people departing from the countries’ airports in response to growing flows of illegal migrants entering Lithuania from Belarus.

“We asked the Iraqi government, the Turkish government to step up control of people departing via airports. We know the specific flights and therefore asked to take measures,” Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis told BNS on Thursday.

The minister said he sought to meet with foreign ministers of those countries in Italy in late June when Rome would host a ministerial meeting of the Global Coalition to Defeat Islamic State.

Landsbergis added that he would like to discuss possibilities to both step up the checks of departing people and return illegal migrants to their countries of origin during a meeting with his Iraqi and Turkish counterparts.

According to the data from the State Border Guard Service, nearly 400 illegal migrants, mainly Iraq citizens, have tried to enter Lithuania from Belarus so far this year, which is five times more than over the whole year of 2020.