Latvia Unveils Evidence Belarus Is Running a State-Backed Migrant Smuggling Operation Into the EU

Latvia’s armed forces and border authorities have released evidence pointing to direct involvement by Belarusian security services in facilitating illegal migration across Latvia’s state border, according to an official statement issued by the Latvian Ministry of Defence on January 14.

The materials detail what Latvian officials describe as coordinated actions by Belarusian state structures, including the transportation of migrants using Belarusian military vehicles and the participation of officials in planning and organizing illegal border crossings.

Latvian authorities reported that documents and communications equipment belonging to a Belarusian serviceman were recovered from one detained migrant.

A subsequent review identified the items as belonging to a member of the intelligence battalion of the 19th Guards Mechanized Infantry Brigade, a Belarusian unit based in the Vitebsk region.

Among the seized materials was internal military documentation, including inventory records tracking issued equipment.

Investigators also found photos and videos on migrants’ mobile phones showing Belarusian border guards alongside the migrants, including footage taken during transport in military vehicles.

Latvia’s National Armed Forces and the State Border Guard of Latvia additionally documented cases in which Belarusian border guards directly escorted migrants to staging areas used for attempted illegal crossings.

Officials stressed that migrants were not only being used to pressure Latvia’s borders but were also exploited for intelligence gathering and other elements of what Latvia characterizes as a broader hybrid threat campaign.

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Latvian authorities also reported recurring incidents of electronic warfare activity originating from Belarus, affecting communications and navigation systems in Latvia’s border regions.

Military officials warned that anyone who knowingly or unknowingly assists in the movement, transport, or accommodation of illegal border crossers is not only violating Latvian law but may also become an instrument of hostile intelligence operations.

According to Latvian officials, such activities are aimed at reconnaissance, sabotage, and other destabilizing actions on the territory of Latvia and elsewhere in Europe.

Earlier, Polish border guards uncovered a tunnel several dozen meters long, which allowed over 180 migrants from Belarus to enter the country.

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