Lithuania Pressures Latvia over Migrants, Offers Assistance

Lithuanian Prime Minister Mindaugas Sinkevicius announced his readiness to intensify technological cooperation with Latvia in response to the growing influx of illegal migrants. Although the Latvian interior minister requested the deployment of 100 border guards, the Lithuanian prime minister expressed doubts about the possibility of providing that many personnel, according to LRT.

Currently, nine Lithuanian border guards, including two dog handlers, are assisting on the ground. The situation is urgent for Lithuania, as the number of migrants detained as part of secondary migration from Latvia has risen sharply year-over-year, from 300 to more than 1,200 people.

Due to the increase, Lithuanian Interior Minister Martynas Katelinas acknowledged that if the situation does not calm down, Lithuania will consider reinstating temporary border controls. Prime Minister Sinkevicius, however, emphasized that it is still too early for such a radical step.

At the same time, he called on the Latvian side to take border protection much more seriously, adding that Lithuania is prepared to assist at the inter-ministerial level.

Efforts to resolve the crisis are also underscored by a bilateral agreement on cooperation in the fight against crime and smuggling networks, which the interior ministers signed during the Latvian president's visit to Lithuania this week. Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda also commented on the issue, stating that reintroducing border controls at the shared border would amount to a de facto capitulation to illegal migration.

(max)