Poland seeks to extend controls at Belarus border

WARSAW • Poland is seeking to extend limits on free movement at the Belarus border as it expects a burgeoning migrant crisis to drag on for months.

The government is readying rules that would replace a state of emergency in a 3km-wide corridor along the 418km border with Belarus, Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski told broadcaster RMF.

Poland introduced the state of emergency in early September and extended it through this month to stem an inflow of mostly Middle Eastern migrants through Belarus. A further extension is barred under the Constitution, leading the government to seek legal alternatives that Parliament will discuss this week.

Fifty migrants were detained while crossing the heavily guarded EU and Nato border near the village of Starzyna "by force" on Saturday, Polish police said, warning of a possible larger breakthrough ahead of a European Union meeting today to widen sanctions on Belarus.

Thousands of migrants are camped out on the EU-Belarus border, creating a stand-off between the EU and the United States on one side and Belarus and its ally Russia on the other.

Western countries accuse Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's regime of deliberately engineering the crisis. Belarus denies the charges and blames the West.

EU foreign ministers will meet today to widen the sanctions already imposed on Belarus for its crackdown on opponents of Mr Lukashenko, who has ruled the country for nearly 30 years.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said ministers would allow sanctions on anyone "taking part in the trafficking of migrants" in Belarus, including airlines, travel agencies and officials.

"Lukashenko got it wrong. He thought that by acting in this way he would twist our arm and force us to cancel the sanctions. The opposite is happening," he said.

Poland has refused to allow the migrants in and accused Belarus of preventing them from leaving.

Mr Kaminski said a rumour was being spread among the migrants that Poland would let them through today. The government has sent a text message to all foreign mobile phones along the border denying it, he said.

The media have been barred from the Polish border region, drawing criticism from Poland's opposition and human rights groups. Mr Kaminski said he was considering relaxing the ban.

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Russia was ready to help resolve the migrant crisis, RIA news agency reported yesterday, citing an interview on a state TV channel.

"We are ready to help it by all means if of course anything would depend on us," Mr Putin was quoted as saying.

BLOOMBERG, REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE