Belarus border closure and Lithuania's emergency: 2 July 2021
A look back at two border-related developments involving Belarus on a single day in the summer of 2021.
What did the events of 2 July 2021 reveal about the state of Belarus's relations with its western neighbours? Two reports from that day pointed to rising friction along its borders, with Ukraine and Lithuania both involved.
According to the reports, Belarus closed its border with Ukraine after President Alexander Lukashenko claimed that arms were being smuggled into the country by "outside powers" seeking to overthrow his regime. He said they had crossed the line and could not be forgiven. Ukraine denied the claims and said that closing the border would make its people suffer.
On the same day, Lithuania declared a state of emergency amid an increase in undocumented migrants crossing from Belarus. The Government of Lithuania accused Lukashenko of deliberately trying to destabilise the country by encouraging and allowing refugees, mostly Syrians, to cross the border.
Two accusations, one pattern
The two episodes were separate: one concerned alleged arms smuggling, the other migration. Yet in both, Minsk was at the centre of a dispute with a neighbour, and in both the neighbour rejected or countered the Belarusian leader's stance. Ukraine disputed the premise of the closure, while Lithuania blamed Lukashenko directly for the influx.
For Kyiv, the practical concern, as it stated on the day, was the burden the closure would place on ordinary people.
