EU members Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, which share a border with Belarus, have worried increasingly about border crossings since hundreds of Russian battle-hardened Wagner mercenaries arrived in Belarus last month at the invitation of President Alexander Lukashenko. Fear and instability are on the rise.

The Lithuanian government has decided to close two of the country’s six border crossing points with Belarus due to “geopolitical circumstances”, weeks after Russian Wagner Group mercenaries took refuge in the country.

Over the previous few weeks Lithuanian officials have discouraged its citizens from travelling to Belarus, a close Russian ally, setting up signs at the borders saying: “Do not risk your safety – do not travel to Belarus. You may fail to come back“.

Belarus Border Guard said Lithuania is using the pretence of “alleged security threats, including the presence of Wagner in Belarus” in order to curb the flow of trade and Lithuanian people through the border, Reuters reported.

Neighbouring Poland has closed all but one border crossing point with Belarus this year following the imprisonment of a journalist of Polish origin and expulsions of Polish diplomats.

Poland has also seen an increase in the number of mainly Middle Eastern and African migrants trying to cross the border in recent months. Warsaw announced plans last week to move 10,000 additional troops to the Belarus border to support existing guards.

In 2021, Latvia, Poland and Lithuania faced an immigration crisis when thousands of people, mostly from the Middle East and Africa, began crossing from Belarus. They eventually resorted to pushing them back, a policy that is still in place.

Latvia, the third EU country bordering Belarus, has two operational crossings.

Latvia’s defence minister ordered the army to help guard the border on Tuesday, after nearly 100 attempts by illegal immigrants to cross from Belarus in 24 hours. Border Guard officers have also been recalled from their holidays to help with patrols.

Latvia has “information about a possible increase in hybrid threats“, the Border Guard said in a statement reported by Reuters. Belarusian authorities were increasingly involved in organising the flow of illegal immigrants, it said.