RIGA (Sputnik) — Riga is considering constructing a fence on its border with Belarus as a way of preventing migrants from arriving in Latvia, Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma said Tuesday.
"Many European countries are building fences. This could be a possible solution [to the EU migration crisis]. It is obvious that nobody will shoot people," Straujuma said on the Latvian LTV channel.
According to Straujuma, Latvia may build fences on sections of the Belarus border that are the most likely to be used for illegal crossings by migrants.
In August, Latvian Interior Minister Rihards Kozlovskis said the country needed to strengthen its shared border with Russia in order to prevent an influx of migrants who did not meet asylum seeker or refugee criteria. The initiative would require some 17 million euros ($18.8 million), according to Kozlovskis.
