Pressure on the Latvian‑Belarusian section of the border is growing, and attempts to cross illegally have increased significantly in recent weeks.

Interior Minister Igor Taro, who visited the Latvian‑Belarusian border last week, said the situation there is very serious.

"It is rush hour at the border, you could say. The Belarusian regime is deliberately sending these migrants into the forest, gathering them in special camps, preparing them, giving them all kinds of tools to overcome obstacles on Latvia's external state border. The situation is quite complicated," he said. 

"This is part of Russia's overall aggression tactics, and Belarus is their ally. Even if they are not acting actively in a military sense, they still support logistics and various relays used to direct drones toward Ukraine. And one form of this supportive activity is sending illegal migrants toward European countries that help Ukraine, to create additional problems and force them to spend resources," the minister continued.

He said illegal migrants create problems for the entire society. When migration centers are overcrowded, resources are needed to house these people and to find interpreters and other specialists. All this creates a serious burden that Latvia feels most acutely right now, but there have also been cases of people detained on Estonian territory.

In recent days, more than 30 migrants who entered Europe after illegally crossing the Belarusian border were detained in Tallinn. 

Taro said Estonia is much better prepared today for possible migration challenges than it was several years ago. In recent years the state has steadily strengthened the external border: a border fence has been built, and work continues on installing modern surveillance systems and other equipment to control the area. 

He also stressed that the fence itself is not an absolute barrier. Its main purpose is to give border guards time to respond to attempts to cross illegally.

At Belarus-Lithuania border, underground digging attempted

Lithuanian border guards discovered an underground tunnel near the Belarus border recently that may have been built to move illegal migrants into the country. The tunnel already extended several meters into Lithuanian territory, but an exit had not yet been completed. 

Estonian Police and Border Guard Board deputy director for border management Veiko Kommusaar said in an interview that there is no information suggesting anyone has tried to dig such a tunnel on Estonia's eastern border, but it cannot be ruled out in the future. History shows attempts to bring contraband alcohol or other goods underwater using cables or even divers. 

Kommusaar added that Estonia's land border is well covered by various surveillance and camera systems. "Surveillance systems are definitely something that shows activity levels. These tunnels are not dug by hand." 

Of Estonia's 130 kilometers of land border with Russia, 110 kilometers are essentially fenced, and more than half of the surveillance systems have been installed. The infrastructure will be completed in 2027, ensuring full surveillance coverage along the entire border. 

In Belarus, tunnels are being dug because the pressure to enter the European Union illegally is so great that all possible methods are being tried. "This is actually enabled by the Belarusian regime itself. You cannot just dig something in a border area. Belarusian border guards facilitate this activity and provide information on possible crossing points at specific times," he added.

Kommusaar said migration pressure on Latvia and Lithuania comes from Belarus, while no similar migration attack is currently being carried out from Russian territory. At the moment there are no signs the Russian Federation is organizing anything similar, but that could change overnight.

Why is there no pressure from Russia now? "One could speculate that if Belarus is doing the dirty work for them, part of the answer lies there." 

Kommusaar said this migration attack in our region has been ongoing for five years. Every day more than 100 people are blocked from entering the European Union at the Latvian border. Unfortunately not all attempts are stopped, and some still manage to cross.

This article has been updated on July 29 with comments by Estonian Police and Border Guard Board deputy director for border management Veiko Kommusaar.

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