Latvia extends Vilkatis illegal migration operation to October

Latvia will extend its Vilkatis operation to reduce illegal migration until October 3, LSM reported. The decision was made at a government meeting on September 1, Andris Kulbergs of the United List said at a news conference after the meeting.

The operation began on August 11 and was initially scheduled to run until the end of August.

Illegal crossings from Belarus into Latvia have continued at increased levels. Similar conditions have been reported in Lithuania and Poland.

Officials from the Baltic states and Poland have said Belarusian authorities are deliberately failing to prevent border crossings in order to punish the countries for supporting the Belarusian opposition and imposing sanctions on the regime of Aleksandr Lukashenko. The European Union has described this conduct as hybrid warfare.

So far this year, 9,932 people have been prevented from illegally crossing the Latvia-Belarus border.

The government has also extended an enhanced border security regime until the end of the year in the municipalities and districts of Ludza, Kraslava and Augsdaugava, the city of Daugavpils and Kaunata Parish in Rēzekne Municipality. During the regime, significantly harsher criminal penalties apply for illegally transporting people across the state border and knowingly enabling people to stay illegally in Latvia.

Last year, the State Border Guard prevented 12,046 attempts to illegally cross the Belarus-Latvia border. In 2024, the figure was 5,388.