Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki has warned that Europe will face an influx of millions of refugees if border policies remain relaxed. He does not rule out the risk of a war and says that “Belarusian forces are making more and more direct challenges”, reports DPA, according to Agerpres.
In an interview with German tabloid Bild, he said he did not rule out the risk of war, given developments on the Polish-Belarusian border.
“If we fail to keep thousands of immigrants away now, hundreds of thousands or even millions will soon come to Europe,” Morawiecki said.
“If we do not protect and resolutely defend our borders in Europe, hundreds of millions of people in Africa or the Middle East will try to come to Europe, and especially to Germany,” he said.
Morawiecki said that the situation on the border with Belarus, where thousands of migrants are trying to enter Poland and implicitly in the EU, is stable, but that the risk is growing.
“Belarusian forces are facing increasingly direct challenges. I hope they will not take a step too far in this process “, he underlined.
“We Poles are determined to protect our border by any means. It is the eastern border of Europe and also of NATO “, added the Polish Prime Minister.
He said he welcomed the support of Germany and other NATO states and that the next step could be a joint statement by Poland, Lithuania and Latvia.
“Another step could be the activation of Article 4 of the NATO Treaty, which officially declares a violation of the territory,” he said. The article allows for consultations between allies, but not for military assistance.
Morawiecki also said it was not known what Belarus and Russia were planning. “It is also possible that this border crisis is aimed at diverting attention from the new military attacks that (Russian President Vladimir) Putin is preparing in Ukraine,” he said.
In other news, the Polish prime minister said in the same interview that Germany should stop the Nord Stream 2 pipeline from Russia to Europe if it wants to contribute to peace, linking the project to Warsaw’s management of the migrant border crisis. , according to Reuters.
“Here in Poland, we are defending the EU border. Speaking of the general situation, let’s work together for peace and not give Vladimir Putin more money through energy payments so that we can continue modernization, “Morawiecki said.
That means stopping the new pipeline from Russia. “Nord Stream 2 must be stopped,” he said.
Editor : R.K.
