Lithuania's interior minister-designate keeps Latvia border controls option open

VILNIUS - Lithuania's interior minister-designate Martynas Katelynas said on Monday he had not ruled out temporarily restoring border controls with Latvia as secondary illegal migration flows increase.

Last summer, Warsaw introduced a similar measure on its borders with Lithuania and Germany due to an increase in migrant numbers.

According to Lithuanian Ministry of the Interior data, secondary migration flows from Latvia quadrupled in the first half of this year compared with the same period in 2024, rising from just over 300 to more than 1,200 people.

"If the situation does not change, all possible solutions must be put on the table. We may consider a mechanism similar to the one Poland applies to us - border restrictions that result in several-kilometer-long queues of cars at the Lithuanian-Polish border during weekends," Katelynas said.

He acknowledged that restoring border controls would be a "nuclear" option, but said such measures might be necessary if other means of managing flows and detaining migrants outside Lithuanian territory fail.

The politician warned that the situation could become difficult to manage "quite quickly", requiring additional decisions.

"Even with a readmission agreement, our border guards will be overburdened. It is not just a simple call to the Latvian side saying we have detained a migrant from your country and asking them to take them back. Documents must be filled out and verified, and migrants must be accommodated. This takes time and resources and, as you mentioned, may raise questions regarding human rights," Katelynas said.

He said Latvia was struggling to manage illegal migration and should show more initiative, while adding that Lithuania did not intend to stop supporting Latvian border guards.

"I believe assistance can continue, but the Latvians themselves must show initiative. This issue should perhaps even be raised at the EU level, as Lithuania solved this problem back in 2021-2022; we have a physical barrier where we can use both pushback tactics and returns to the Belarusian side," the minister-designate said.

"Migrants enter Latvian territory and disappear, then our border guards have to detain those migrants with forged documents on Lithuanian territory on the Riga-Warsaw bus route. This is not acceptable, and Latvia must make greater efforts," Katelynas said.

"I believe that through various formats, whether between interior ministries or at the level of prime ministers or presidents, solutions will be sought and found," he added.

This year, 6,600 illegal migrants attempted to enter Latvia and were either detained and returned to Belarus or turned away at the border. Lithuanian border guards have prevented 900 migrants from entering from Belarus so far this year.

According to ministry data, 1,200 illegal migrants transported from Latvia or travelling independently were detained in Lithuania last year, about two and a half times more than in 2024, when the figure stood at 540.

Since the start of the migration crisis orchestrated by Belarus, Lithuanian border guards have prevented a total of 25,500 foreigners from entering the country illegally.