On Sunday, 21 November, Prime Minister Krišjānis Kariņš met with Prime Minister of Poland Mateusz Morawiecki to discuss the current situation on the external border of the European Union (EU) with Belarus in the context of the hybrid attack organised by the Lukashenko regime, as well as regional security issues.
“The European Union is experiencing a coordinated hybrid attack by the Belarusian regime, which exploits third-country nationals and tries to get them into the EU through illegal border crossings at the borders of Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. We have a unified and well-established position - we will not allow the Belarusian regime to get the third-country nationals illegally into the European Union," stressed K. Kariņš after a meeting with this Polish colleague.
After the meeting, the Prime Minister noted that if the Lukashenko regime had hoped to destabilise or split the EU through its hybrid attack, the opposite is happening - Europe cooperates even more closely. K. Kariņš admitted that cooperation between the Baltic States and Poland is excellent and coordination takes place at all levels. Latvia also intends to send a group of border guards and police officers to Poland.
K. Kariņš also highlighted that there is an international solution to the crisis caused by the Belarusian regime - the United Nations’ involvement is needed to organise the repatriation of third-country nationals in the territory of Belarus to their countries of origin.
During the meeting, the officials also discussed the situation in Ukraine and the concentration of Russian forces in its border area. The Heads of Government agreed that the situation on the Ukraine-Russia border and on the EU’s external borders should be seen as a whole picture. During the negotiations, the Prime Ministers also addressed the rise in energy prices and Russia’s role in it, as well as the growing threat of information and cyber-attacks.
Today, Prime Minister of Poland Mateusz Morawiecki paid a working visit to Rīga, Vilnius and Tallinn to meet with the Heads of Government.