The European Union will slap sanctions on Belarus over the migrant crisis in the "coming days", after the bloc's foreign ministers gave their backing, Brussels' top diplomat Josep Borrell said Monday.
After meeting the ministers, Borrell said the new sanctions would hit "quite an important number" of individuals and entities for "facilitating illegal border crossings into the EU".
"By expanding the scope of the sanctions we will be able to target those responsible for exploiting vulnerable migrants," Borrell said.
Diplomats said the new penalties are expected to target around 30 Belarusian officials, the state airline and travel agencies accused of helping deliver migrants to the border.
The sanction threat came as Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed how to solve the migration crisis for around an hour, according to a Telegram channel close to the Belarusian presidency.
Merkel raised the issue of bringing humanitarian aid to the thousands stuck at the border, said Belarusian state media. It was Lukashenko's first phone call with a Western leader since he suppressed mass anti-government protests last summer.
Also on Monday evening, Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the crisis with French President Emmanuel Macron, with both sides saying the stand-off should be de-escalated.
Flights to Minsk halted
Thousands of mainly Middle Eastern migrants are camped out in dire conditions at the Belarusian-Polish boder, trapped in a perilous standoff with Minsk.
>> Read more on InfoMigrants: 'Lies, lies, lies!': For migrants trapped on the Belarus-Polish border, no easy way back to Minsk
The West accuses Lukashenko's government of orchestrating the crisis in retaliation for earlier sanctions by encouraging migrants to fly to Minsk and helping them to the border.
Brussels has pushed key transit hubs such as Turkey and Dubai to stop flights to Minsk in order to stem the flow of migrants to the country.
The EU is also pushing the United Nations to step in to offer assistance to the men, women and children at the Belarusian border.
The bloc has already placed 166 people tied to the regime – including Lukashenko and his sons – on a blacklist over a crackdown on opponents since disputed elections last year.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
