EU To Adopt New Sanctions Against Belarus Amid Migrant Crisis

EU foreign ministers will adopt on Monday new sanctions against Belarus, as well as a sanctions regime against companies complicit in bringing migrants to the Poland-Belarus border.

"Today, we are going to approve a new package of sanctions against the Belarusian people responsible for what is happening in the country," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on his way to the meeting, referring to the escalating migration crisis at the bloc's border with Belarus.

The ministers will also give the green light for a larger framework "to implement sanctions to other people, airlines, travel agencies and everybody involved in this illegal transportation of migrants to our borders," he added.

Borrell stated that he had held phone conversation on Sunday with Polish, Lithuanian, Belarusian top diplomats and the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to prepare for the ministerial meeting.

"People's lives must be protected and humanitarian agencies allowed access," Borrell said on Twitter following his talk with Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei for the first time since the migrant crisis escalated.

Heading to the meeting, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis also confirmed that they were set to adopt new sanctions against Belarus with counterparts, and asserted that the bloc had to go beyond these measures.

"We need to make Minsk airport a no-fly zone, or at least for the time being, we need to make sure that no planes that would be potentially bringing in people with intention to migrate to across the border illegally," Landsbergis said.

He also pointed out that the bloc had to work together with international organizations to bring the migrants back to their countries of origin.

"Thirdly, we need to discuss not only about the sanctions, but about the future of the Belarusian regime," Landsbergis added, mentioning legal consequences of bringing migrants to the bloc's borders.

At least 2,000 people, including women and children, have got stuck at the Belarus-Poland border area in dire conditions since last week.

According to the EU, the Belarusian regime reaches out to potential travelers by seemingly official channels, through diplomatic representations or travel agencies, and invites them to Belarus by offering visas and guiding them to the EU border.

NATO and the EU consider Belarus' approach towards migrants as a hybrid attack meant to destabilize and undermine security in European countries through non-military means.

EU countries bordering Belarus – Lithuania, Latvia and Poland – have been reporting a dramatically growing number of irregular crossings since August.

Over 8,000 people tried to enter the bloc via the Belarus-EU border so far this year, up sharply from just 150 last year. -