Permanent Representatives of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia met with the Heads of UNHCR and IOM in Geneva
01.10.2021
On September 29-30, 2021, the Permanent Representatives of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia to the United Nations Office in Geneva held joint visits to the Director General of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), Antonio Vitorino and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UN High Commissioner for Refugees, UNHCR), Filippo Grandi. The purpose of the meetings was to inform on the current situation at the borders of Poland, Lithuania and Latvia with Belarus and to condemn the actions of Belarus constituting a hybrid threat to stability and security in the European Union.
During the meetings, the ambassadors of four countries presented a joint letter to the heads of the IOM and UNHCR expressing their concern about the continuing crisis on the border between Belarus and the European Union where a sharp increase in number of persons attempting to illegally cross the EU's external border has been observed for several months. The situation is a systemic action organized by Belarus aimed at destabilizing the European Union.
The ambassadors of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia highlighted the situation by providing detailed information on the incidents taking place at the border, their sources and scale. They informed about the humanitarian assistance, including medical aid, delivered immediately to all people in need in their territories. Deep condolences were expressed due to the tragic fate of migrants who lost their lives becoming victims of the instrumental use of migration to exert political pressure on EU Member States. At the same time, organized actions by Belarus by recruiting and transferring people who wanted to enter the territory of the European Union were strongly condemned.
"Countries have to honour their international obligations – and our countries are fully committed to that purpose – with regard to all people within their jurisdiction, irrespective of their legal status" – said Ambassador Zbigniew Czech, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Poland.
The Permanent Representatives called on the representatives of UNHCR and IOM to take action, within their mandates and in cooperation with other international organizations working to protect human rights, to put an end to the current situation by intervening at the source of migration routes, along these routes and, above all, against the organizers of these developments.
IOM and UNHCR ensured that they remain in close contact regarding the migration situation on the border between Belarus and the European Union. Both organizations expressed their readiness to assist people wishing to return to their places of origin or whose asylum applications have been rejected under the voluntary returns.
