Lithuanian foreign minister calls for EU sanctions against Belarus' airports

VILNIUS – Amid the worsening situation on the EU-Belarus border, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis has called on the bloc to tighten sanctions against the Minsk regime and add Belarus' airports to the blacklist. 

The Alexander Lukashenko's regime continues to use airports to organize irregular migration, according to the minister.

On Monday, Lithuania's top diplomat spoke by phone with Josep Borrell, the EU's foreign policy chief, to discuss "the escalating tension on the EU-Belarus border", the Foreign Ministry said in a press release. 

"Europe cannot delay any longer. The escalating tension on the Polish border is yet another proof that the Belarusian regime is about to take active offensive and provocative actions," it quoted Landsbergis as saying. "Europe must react immediately and tighten its sanctions."

"We must impose sanctions against airports in Belarus. All airlines of the world should understand that they cooperate with the criminal regime by flying to Belarus," he added.  

Polish forces on Monday repelled an attempt by a large group of irregular migrants to force their way across the border from Belarus. 

Landsbergis also informed Borrell that Lithuania was in "constant contact with Poland in resolving the crisis on the EU border", according to the press release.