Lithuanian border guards turn back 11 irregular migrants from Belarus

Lithuanian border authorities prevented 11 irregular migrants from entering the country from Belarus over the past day, the State Border Guard Service (VSAT) reported on Thursday.

According to VSAT data, Latvian border guards turned back 27 irregular migrants on Wednesday, while Polish officials recorded no attempts on Tuesday. Since the start of this year, Lithuania has blocked 333 attempts by irregular migrants to cross the border.

Last year, border guards registered over 1,600 attempts to enter Lithuania illegally from Belarus, compared to 1,002 in 2024. Since the start of the migration crisis orchestrated by Belarus in 2021, Lithuanian authorities have prevented nearly 25,000 foreigners from entering the country illegally.

The influx of migrants to the EU’s eastern borders via Belarus began in 2021, with Western officials accusing Minsk of deliberately facilitating the movement.