The Polish government has asked the president to introduce a state of emergency in parts of two regions next to the border with Belarus, the prime minister said on Tuesday, as the country faces a spike in illegal border crossings.
The state of emergency will last for 30 days, Mateusz Morawiecki said. "This will help us to ensure our borders are tight and prevent such provocations by Lukashenko," he added.
Poland's Interior Minister Mariusz Kamiński said the decision was not easy as this would be the first state of emergency in free Poland.
"We can't afford to make exceptions - if we let those people in, we will have many more such situation as in Usnarz," Kamiński said. "No one forces them to camp there, they are free to move along".
Poland began building a barbed wire fence last week along the border in an effort to curb the flow of migrants from countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan crossing from Belarus.
The European Union, of which Poland is a member state, has accused Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko of waging "hybrid warfare" with migrants to exert pressure on the bloc.
Poland also sees Belarus's behaviour as retaliation for Warsaw's decision to give refuge to Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, a Belarusian athlete who refused to return home from the Tokyo Olympics. Minsk has not responded to requests for comment.
Polish authorities have faced criticism from human rights groups for not accepting migrants, and for denying those at the border adequate medical care. Warsaw says they are the responsibility of the Belarusian authorities.
Źródło: TVN24 News in English, Reuters
Źródło zdjęcia głównego: tvn24