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Why Belarus's border moves worried its neighbours
Summary
A retrospective on 2 July 2021, when Belarus and its western neighbours exchanged accusations over borders, arms and migrants.
What did Alexander Lukashenko's government and its neighbours accuse each other of on 2 July 2021? Two separate disputes on that day involved the Belarusian president and a border.
As reported at the time, Belarus closed its border with Ukraine. Lukashenko claimed that arms were being smuggled into the country in an attempt by "outside powers" to overthrow his regime. He said they had crossed the line and could not be forgiven. Ukraine denied the claims and said that closing the border would make its people suffer.
On the same day, Lithuania declared a state of emergency. The number of undocumented migrants crossing from Belarus had increased, most of them Syrians. The Lithuanian government accused Lukashenko of deliberately trying to destabilise the country by encouraging and allowing the crossings.
Two accusations, one border theme
The two cases were different. In one, Minsk alleged an external plot and Kyiv rejected it. In the other, Vilnius alleged that Minsk itself was acting against its neighbour. In both, a Belarusian frontier was central to the dispute, and Lukashenko was at the heart of the claims.
