Unknown individuals wearing masks and carrying weapons, while threatening Latvian military personnel, attempted to forcibly move around 20 illegal migrants into the country from Belarus, reports UNN, citing the official Latvian military information portal.
Details
Servicemen of the Latvian National Armed Forces (NAF) thwarted an attempt by a group of at least 20 illegal migrants to cross the state border from Belarus. According to the NAF, the individuals accompanying the group were masked, armed, and threatened Latvian military personnel.
The NAF noted that the movement of migrants from Belarus to Latvia was a planned action. The escorts actively urged the group toward Latvia while simultaneously threatening military personnel.
According to the NAF, this provocation differed from many previous incidents in the particularly brazen and aggressive behavior of the individuals accompanying the migrants.
The NAF added that illegal migration is being used as an instrument of pressure on Latvia's border, which is also the external border of the European Union and NATO. In the armed forces' view, this incident confirms that deliberate provocations and hybrid threats on the Latvian-Belarusian border will continue.