Poland-Belarus border: EU accuses Minsk of 'cynical' exploitation over migrant influx

There was strong international condemnation of Belarus on Monday as the European Union, the United States and NATO pointed fingers at the Lukashenko government after a sudden surge in the number of migrants massing at the Polish border.

Poland accused Belarus of a "deliberate escalation of tension" on its side of the border between the two countries, after several hundred migrants gathered at the frontier trying to reach the European Union.

The European Commission accused the Belarusian leader of continuing "to use people as pawns" in his campaign against the bloc, saying he must "stop putting people's lives at risk".

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for extended sanctions, and possible measures against third country airlines involved in human trafficking. Belarus has been accused of flying people from Middle Eastern countries and dumping them at EU borders.

"A coordinated attempt at a mass entry into the territory of the Republic of Poland of migrants used by Belarus for a hybrid attack against Poland has just begun," it said.

The statement said the latest influx was a "form of revenge" by Belarus' leader Alexander Lukashenko against Poland, Lithuania and Latvia.

"By creating an artificial migration route and cynically exploiting migrants, Lukashenka is trying to destabilize Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, and to force the European Union to lift the sanctions imposed on the Minsk regime."

Poland's interior ministry said it had rebuffed an attempt at illegal entry on Monday, saying the situation was under control.

The US State Department described the scenes at the border as "troubling" and called on Belarus to stop its "manipulation" of the situation.

NATO called it "unacceptable" and accused Lukashenko of "using" migrants as a "hybrid tactic".

Earlier, Warsaw reinforced security at the border, sending additional police. Polish defence minister Mariusz Błaszczak said more than 12,000 soldiers were on duty at the frontier with Belarus and that they were prepared to defend it.

Interior minister Mariusz Kaminski said that a "tough border defence" was the country's main priority.

"We have been monitoring the situation in Kuźnica for several days and we are prepared for any scenario," said Kaminski in a Twitter post.

"We increased the number of Border Guard officers, policemen and soldiers," he added.