Андрей Сибига. Фото: МИД Украины
Russia is using the Belarusian regime and the migration crisis to destabilize Europe, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on September 16.
Sybiha warned that Russia wants to provoke a new wave of migration to Europe, including through Belarus.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry believes that hunger and food shortages in countries dependent on food imports will lead to an influx of migrants from those countries into the European Union.
Such a strategy is particularly appealing to Moscow ahead of elections in EU member states next year, given that migration is one of the most sensitive issues in European election campaigns.
“He [Putin — Reform.news note] will use all available means to increase the flow of migrants to Europe. The blockade of the Black Sea is just one of them. Another remains Lukashenko’s regime in Belarus. Lithuania recently discovered several new underground tunnels dug from Belarusian territory that were supposed to be used to smuggle migrants illegally across the border.
Moscow believes that such a strategy will create tensions, sow division, strengthen radical anti-European movements and ultimately weaken European support for Ukraine”, Sybiha said.
That is why support for Ukrainian agricultural exports and the unblocking of shipping in the Black Sea are vital for the European Union and the world as a whole.
Sybiha stressed that in this situation it is necessary to ensure shipping from Ukrainian seaports, develop alternative routes, and also develop a Europe-wide strategy to counter Russian disinformation, interference and manipulation campaigns.