Name? Aleksander Lukashenko
Westphalian identity? Belarusian
Age? 67
Why is he in the news? With a new migrant influx in Europe, Aleksander Lukashenko has been accused of sending Iraqi migrants into Europe via Poland and the Baltics. The crisis has escaped in recent months as Lukashenko is accused of pressuring the European Union by diverting migrants in order that they may lift sanctions against his regime.
Why do we care? Lukashenko has been pressuring the European Union with his country’s immigration policy for a while. Previously vowing not to accept migrants back into Belarus, sending them to pressure the EU to lift sanctions is a questionable strategy. Unless Lukashenko wants to stick it to Europe, which he does, it is most likely that Europe will double-down on sanctions against his regime. Though to Lukashenko, his strategy would hopefully force the EU to question if it can find a diplomatic course with Lukashenko at the table, opening the door for Belarusian concessions.
Why should you care? Clashes between border security and migrants are increasing on the Poland-Belrusian border. Ten migrants have been found dead due to hypothermia or lack of food on the Polish-Belarusian border; as the standoff continues, more people will be in need of help, so you should care 6/10 about the current migrant dispute.
Who else cares? The Prime Minister of Poland, Mateusz Morawiecki, has been especially vocal against Lukashenko, saying, “the stability and security of the entire EU is at stake.” Morawiecki may weaponise the migrants (letting them pass to Germany) as well as a way to receive frozen EU funding for breaching ‘rule of law’.
Any further comments? Brussels has shot down any calls for the EU to fund border walls along the Belarusian border, despite support from Austria, Poland, Lithuania, and Greece. Rather, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, threatened increasing sanctions against Belarus for using migrants “for political purposes.”
