Latvian President convenes Security Council meeting to discuss border situation with Russia and Belarus
Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs convened a meeting of the National Security Council on August 17 to discuss the border situation with Russia and Belarus. The Council is expected to address issues such as the presence of the Wagner Group in Belarus and Minsk's attempts to provoke a hybrid war.
Tensions on Belarus' borders with Poland and the Baltic states have been rising since 2021, when Minsk created a "migrant crisis". Riga recently moved its army to the border after nearly 100 illegal migrants tried to cross within 24 hours.
Concerns among eastern NATO members have risen again following Russia's large-scale invasion of Ukraine and, more recently, when fighters from Russia's Wagner group began moving into Belarus after their short-lived rebellion against the Kremlin.
According to the Latvian news publication Delfi, the country's security services have uncovered attempts to lure new recruits into the Wagner Group in Latvia. Russians are the largest ethnic minority in the Baltic country, accounting for about a quarter of the population.
Last week, Minsk also launched military exercises near its border with Poland and Lithuania, not far from the strategic strip of land known as the Suwalki Gap.
In response to escalating tensions, countries on NATO's eastern flank have begun to strengthen their eastern borders and limit the number of border crossings.
