Lithuanian Expert: Lukashenka’s Regime Should Be treated As Terrorist One

Belarusian state structures are engaged in human smuggling.

In six months of 2020, the number of detained illegal migrants in Lithuania was higher than in the whole of 2019. Lithuanian border guards have information that the Belarusian regime is involved.

Charter97.org discussed with Marius Laurinavicius, chief analyst at the Vilnius Institute of Political Analysis, the current smuggling through the Belarusian border into Lithuania.

- In the first six months of 2020, the number of detained illegal migrants in Lithuania was higher than in the whole of 2019. Lithuanian border guards have information that the Belarusian regime is involved. How do you comment on this?

- It is clear this is part of the hybrid war started by the Lukashenka regime against Lithuania. First of all, it is revenge for a strong position against this illegitimate and criminal regime. We have simply opened our eyes to this regime for committing such illegal acts: first, the hijacking was a terrorist act, and now, to put it bluntly, human smuggling.

When we talk about migrants, the whole of Europe is aware of the problem. In the case of Belarus, we must call a spade a spade: smuggling of people. The criminal Lukashenka regime is engaged in it. We open our eyes to this but do not yet fully realize with whom and what we are dealing. Now, this smuggling is used to achieve geopolitical goals. I told you before, it's revenge. They think they can somehow influence some decisions of Lithuania. It's naive. However, we still miss one important detail: this is the very essence of the regime itself. The criminal schemes used by the regime resemble a criminal business. This is it: cigarette smuggling, for example, is also carried out by the state, the Lukashenka regime. Now, there haven't been any public scandals. There was a time when we made a loud statement that the illegal arms trade was carried out through Belarus. These are different puzzles of one picture we still can't see completely or don't want to see.

Lukashenka's regime from head to toe is a criminal one, and, now, we already see that it is a terrorist one. So far, we haven't yet realized that the regime has been like that all this time, it hasn't become that way now. Some people in Lithuania, Europe, and America said we had to "cooperate" with Lukashenka's regime in order to help somehow defend Belarus against Russia. However, if we understood that the regime was criminal and terrorist from head to toe, I guess there would be no such statements and policy lines.

- What is another basis for your definition: human smuggling?

- According to some information, such structures as travel agencies are already involved. These people who cross the border do not appear by unknown means in Belarus, but, I would say, they arrive, fly in. Again, there is information that it happens with the assistance of people serving in the state structures. They bring people to the Lithuanian border and cross the border in an organized manner. Everything I have described is people smuggling, which is carried out not by some criminal groups, but by the state.

- What kind of punishment should the perpetrators of people smuggling face?

- I guess there are international norms and laws for that. From personal responsibility for people smuggling to the responsibility of the regime itself. After the hijacking by Lukashenka's regime, the reaction of the European Union followed. We are observing it now; new measures, such as sectoral sanctions, are being discussed. This is a consequence of this terrorist act. I think such a reaction should apply to all other crimes as we react to the hijacking.

- The Minister of the Interior Affairs, Agnė Bilotaitė, said that Lithuania was considering the construction of a wall around the border with Belarus. Could it help stop illegal border crossings?

- As I said, we were naive to estimate this regime. We did not understand what we were dealing with, and that's why we have problems today with partial control of the border with Belarus. This is public information; I am not revealing any secrets here. I will say this to make it clearer to people: if you have a neighbour who is a bandit, the first thing you do is to close your doors, install serious locks and put up a larger fence, in order to somehow protect yourself. It's the same here.

Yes, we need a wall and other modern measures of border control. Experts should decide this. In my opinion, this should have happened not yesterday, the day before yesterday, but I don't know how many years ago. The problem is that we assessed this regime differently than it actually is.

- Should the EU increase pressure on the regime because of the smuggling trade and illegal migrants?

- Neither the EU, nor Lithuania, nor any other state or the international community should take some measures only when a hijacking or something like that happens. It is great that they have started to take steps now. But we have to treat criminal groups and regimes the way we treat criminals or terrorists.

The West has different strategies on how to deal with, say, the Mafia or terrorists. These strategies should be exercised not only when we are dealing with individual groups, whether terrorist or mafia, but also with state ones. If a state acts like a criminal or terrorist organization, it should be treated accordingly.

- What can the European Union do to help Lithuania solve this problem?

- First of all, we must say that this is not a Lithuanian problem, but a problem of the European Union. The EU's external borders are already a problem for the whole Union. There are specific organizations that deal with this; there is funding. These are technical decisions that have to be made and are already being made. Lithuania has requested assistance from the European organization Frontex, i.e. it will be solved.

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