The governor of the Kaliningrad region, Anton Alikhanov, said that he is concerned about Lithuania’s plans to limit the transit of goods from Belarus, because the region consumes Belarusian products.
“I am very worried that some initiatives are heard to limit the transit of Belarusian goods through the territory of Lithuania. And I ask everyone for help. Actually, there is Kaliningrad. And besides the fact that something can pass through us in transit, we, in fact, consume Belarusian goods – food, building materials and not only, ”Alikhanov said in an interview with RIA Novosti. According to him, such actions can pose a threat to the food and economic security of the region.
Earlier, the Lithuanian Ministry of Transport proposed to impose sanctions on goods that are imported, purchased or transited directly or indirectly from Belarus. The Russian Foreign Ministry said that this could affect the provision of the Kaliningrad region, so Russia will not disregard this.
The Russian Foreign Ministry called Lithuania’s plans to limit transit “dead end”. According to the official representative of the ministry, Maria Zakharova, Moscow will not disregard such restrictions.
This year, several countries bordering Belarus (Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia) have announced an unprecedented influx of illegal migrants from the territory of the republic. The EU accused Minsk of organizing channels of illegal migration in order to force the EU to lift sanctions from the republic. President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko announced in the summer that control over the flows of illegal immigrants was weakened due to European sanctions: according to him, Minsk has “neither the money nor the strength” to restrain refugees who arrive in the country legally.
In November, the situation on the Belarusian-Polish border escalated, with several thousand camped near the barriers. They tried to break through the cordon more than once, their attempts were suppressed by the Polish security forces. At the same time, the Polish side used water cannons and tear gas, and the bodies of dead migrants were repeatedly found in the border strip. The EU and Belarus blame each other for the crisis.
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