According to Manfred Weber, the construction of a border fence in Poland to stop illegal migration from Belarus to the territory of the community should be supported with European Union funds.

The head of the European Parliament (EP) faction of the European People's Party (EPP) told the Sunday German newspaper Welt am Sonntag about the migration wave generated by the Belarusian regime towards the EU: he supports the EU giving money to the planned Polish-Belarusian section of the external border of the community on a fence.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's "blackmail attempts" at the Greek-Turkish EU external border "could only be stopped when the border fence practically prevented unauthorized crossings. The same now applies to the eastern border," said the Bavarian Christian Social Union (CSU) politician.

Thorsten Frei, the head of the German federal parliamentary (Bundestag) group responsible for migration, also urges support for the construction of the Polish border fence. The EU must do everything possible to support Poland in protecting its external EU border, so if necessary, it must also provide support for the construction of the border fence, the deputy group leader told Welt am Sonntag.

He added that it is also essential to work out a German-Polish agreement, based on which people intending to enter Germany from Poland without a legal document can be turned back at the border.

"The pressure on the EU's eastern external border will ease as soon as it becomes clear that the road to Germany is not open," said the CDU/CSU politician, who is preparing for an opposition role after 16 years of government.

According to Welt am Sonntag, the Belarusian regime led by Alexander Lukashenko is trying to further increase illegal migration to the EU. This is indicated by the schedule plans of the Minsk airport, according to which around forty flights will arrive from Istanbul, Damascus and Dubai every week during the winter period until March. This is a more than double increase compared to the 17 registered in the winter of 2019/2020, Welt am Sonntag pointed out, pointing out that the majority of people trying to enter the EU illegally arrive in Belarus from these three airports.

As it was written, German security circles estimate that an average of 800-1,000 such people arrive by plane from the Middle East to Minsk every day. The number of flights fluctuates from week to week and occasionally a flight or two are cancelled. However, five additional airports in Belarus will soon be connected to Middle Eastern traffic. These airports are reclassified from domestic to international. One of these is the Grodno airport, located only 20 kilometers from the Polish border, Welt am Sonntag sources said, adding that the Minsk regime operates with Russian support, so people are transported to Belarus not only from the Middle East, but also from Moscow.

A migration wave unfolded on the border between the EU and Belarus in August. The development is related to the EU sanctions introduced due to the violence against opposition movements in Belarus. In its latest report, the European Commission characterized the processes unfolding at the border as state-financed human trafficking. According to the knowledge of the Brussels committee, people trying to join the EU reach Belarus through the organization of Belarusian state tourism companies.

The number one destination is Germany. According to the data of the federal police responsible for border guarding, only 26 people arrived in Germany illegally on the Belarus-Poland route in the January-July period. In August, however, 474 such entries without legal title were registered, in September 903, and in October 5,285.

During the last large wave of asylum migration, in 2015, around 890,000 asylum seekers arrived in Germany. Their number dropped to 280,000 in 2016 and has been steadily decreasing ever since.

MTI

Photo: MTI