Migrant tunnels in Lithuania direct suspicion towards Minsk
Lithuania's border guards have discovered tunnels through which migrants are trying to enter the country from Belarus. Analysts see them as a means to destabilize the country.
Recent reports indicate that migrants are increasingly utilizing underground tunnels to enter Lithuania, potentially as a tactic by Belarus to stir political unrest, according to experts. Lithuania's border guards have discovered 12 such tunnels along the country's 550-kilometer fenced border with Belarus, with lengths reaching up to 25 meters on the Lithuanian side.
General Rustamas Liubajevas, the commander of Lithuania's State Border Guard Service, revealed that the country's ground seismic system can detect extensive vibrations over long periods, enabling apprehension of migrants exiting the tunnels. Up to 40 migrants have been arrested this way.
Lithuania's prosecutor's office confirmed an ongoing preliminary investigation into around 20 individuals suspected of illegally constructing the tunnels, including potential charges of people smuggling. Due to the ongoing investigation, media visits are currently prohibited at the site locations. General Liubajevas expressed surprise at the migrants' decision to take such a risky route, as it requires significant effort and leads to immediate arrests.
He believes the migrants are not acting alone and rely on logistical support from Belarusian authorities, which includes materials like wood for tunnel reinforcement.
General Liubajevas further suggested that Belarus likely aims to keep the border tension high. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has denied any involvement in facilitating migration flows to neighboring states. Margarita Seselgyte, Director of the Institute of International Relations and Political Science at Vilnius University, concurred with General Liubajevas' assessment, attributing the tunnels to a "hybrid attack" intended to cause anxiety within Lithuanian society.
She posits that Belarus, acting as a close ally of Russia, is exploiting the situation to weaken support for Ukraine and disrupt European unity.
Linas Kojala, CEO of Vilnius-based think tank Geopolitics and Security Studies Center, noted that the tunnels are keeping the border force occupied, even if only a few migrants succeed in crossing. He described the situation as part of a broader "weaponized migration" trend since 2021, when tens of thousands of migrants entered Lithuania, Poland, and Latvia from Belarus. The European Union labeled the incidents as a "state-sponsored instrumentalization of migrants at the EU external border," organized by Lukashenko.
Experts concur that Belarus, along with other authoritarian regimes, often employs weaponized migration as a strategic tool to exert pressure on countries, creating instability along NATO's eastern flank and fueling political and social tensions within European nations.
Written by urgent.news from DW English (Top Stories)'s reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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