Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk connected Saturday announced plans to temporarily suspend the close to asylum. The determination aims to bounds the fig of radical crossing the country's border with Belarus and seek refuge successful the European Union.
Over the past 3 years, Poland — a NATO subordinate and EU state — has accused Belarus and Russia of helping thousands of migrants, mainly from the Middle East and Africa, to effort to participate to state via the EU's eastbound flank. Warsaw has labeled it a "hybrid attack."
What did Donald Tusk say?
Polish quality bureau PAP reported that Tusk told a enactment legislature of his liberal Civic Coalition (KO) that his government plans a new migration strategy to assistance wage a "merciless" combat against amerciable immigration.
"I'm saying large and arrogant that our migration strategy volition see the impermanent suspension of the close to asylum connected our territory," helium added.
The premier curate didn't grow connected the plans, but vowed that "the authorities indispensable regain 100% of the power implicit who enters and leaves Poland."
Tusk pointed to the alleged misuse of the close to asylum "by [Belarusian President Alexander] Lukashenko, by [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, by smugglers, quality smugglers, quality traffickers." which helium said was "completely contrary to the existent essence of the close to asylum."
Tusk, who is the erstwhile president of the European Council — the Brussels-based assemblage that steers the EU's governmental direction — added that Warsaw would besides "demand designation successful Europe for this decision."
Referring to the bloc's caller asylum and migration pact, which seeks to found a bloc-wide asylum policy, he warned: "We are not going to respect oregon use immoderate European thought that... hinders our security."
Poland and the Czech Republic this week demanded tougher restrictions than those laid retired successful the caller EU pact, which is owed to instrumentality effect successful 2026.
Tusk said helium would contiguous his migration strategy to the Cabinet connected Tuesday, telling delegates that "we volition trim amerciable migration successful Poland to a minimum."
Germany's plans to enforce borderline checks spark backlash
Migration situation connected Belarusian-Polish border
Poland has faced increasing pressure from undocumented migrants on its borderline with Belarus since 2021.
Successive Polish governments person accused Belarus and Russia of luring migrants to the shared border and attempting to destabilize the EU. Minsk and Moscow person rejected the accusations.
European officials person described however Belarusian question agents and immoderate Middle Eastern airlines have advertised tours to Belarus and falsely promoted seamless introduction into the EU.
The migrants would then fly into Belarus and beryllium fixed instructions connected however to scope the Belarusian-Polish borderline to participate the EU.
Some migrants accidental they were adjacent given wire cutters and axes to chopped done borderline fences.
Between August and December 2021, Warsaw recorded thousands of unauthorized attempts to transverse the associated border. Several radical person died. Since past spring, the number of attempted crossings has again been rising.
Tusk has pursued a tough argumentation towards migration since helium took bureau successful December 2023, mostly pursuing the people acceptable by the erstwhile nationalist government. The strategy has won wide nationalist enactment but has frustrated rights groups who had hoped his medication would beryllium much welcoming of migrants.
In May, Poland said it was mounting speech €2.3 cardinal ($2.52 billion) to reinforce its borderline with Belarus.
mm/dj (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)