Live Updates: 850 Refugees Arrive at Logistics Centre in Belarus, Others Stay at Polish Border

Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei held a phone conversation with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, declaring Minsk's commitment to a joint search for ways to resolve the migration crisis, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"The Foreign Minister reiterated Belarus' focus on the joint search for solutions to existing problems, including the early resolution of the migration crisis. V.Makei emphasized Belarus’ principle position on rejection of sanctions as a policy tool towards a sovereign and independent state, which have negative consequences for both the bilateral relations and the regional stability and security in general," the statement says.

The Polish police said on Tuesday that the situation at the border with Belarus is under control, and no serious incidents have been observed.

Earlier in the day, the Polish police reported on seven policemen, a soldier, and a female border guard who sustained injuries in clashes with migrants at the border.

"Summarizing this hard day, we are saying that the situation at the border is currently under control, and no serious incidents are being seen," the police tweeted, adding that no "aggressive crowd" will manage to cross the border illegally.

Since early Tuesday, the Belarusian-Polish border has witnessed attacks by migrants seeking to enter the European Union. They threw sticks and rocks at Polish security forces who used tear gas, stun grenades, and water cannons in response.

Thousands of migrants have been crowding at the western border of Belarus for the past few weeks. Poland has advanced its border guard and deployed the military to thwart the attempts of migrants to enter the country. Warsaw blames the migration crisis on Minsk, which denies the allegation.

Belarusian state-run broadcaster STV reported that 850 Middle Eastern refugees decided to spend the night in a logistics centre located near the checkpoint across the Belarusian-Polish border.

Another 1,200 migrants remain in a camp in the forest near the Belarusian-Polish border, it said.

The phone conversation between Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Acting German Chancellor Angela Merkel, held on Monday on the situation with migrants at the Belarusian-Polish border, was concrete, both sides are disposed to resolve it, Belarusian Foreign Ministry spokesman Anatoly Glaz said.

"Of course, for obvious reasons, I cannot specify the details of the conversation. Moreover, today a number of substantive things were announced by the President of Belarus. I can add that the conversation was very businesslike, concrete, it was possible because both sides are sincerely interested in resolving the current situation," he told the Rossiya 24 broadcaster.

According to Glaz, during the negotiations, the Belarusian side voiced specific ideas aimed at resolving the situation.

"We sincerely hope that this conversation will have positive consequences," he said.

Employees of the Belarusian Investigative Committee arrived at the Bruzgi checkpoint after the assault of the Polish border by migrants, Sputnik Belarus reported.

The investigative committee confirmed that it was conducting an inspection due to the use of special equipment by the Polish security forces against migrants who were trying to break through the border.

"The Investigative Committee is working at the Bruzgi checkpoint, is conducting an investigation into the use of special means and ammunition against unarmed citizens and causing them bodily harm on the Belarusian-Polish border at the Bruzgi checkpoint. Among the victims there are women and children," the committee said on Telegram.

It is emphasized that "at the time of the use of stun grenades and water cannons by the neighbouring state, the victims were, including, on the territory of the Republic of Belarus."

The Iraqi authorities will have a new list of Iraqi citizens wishing to return from Belarus to their homeland on Tuesday or Wednesday, Iraqi Consul in Russia Majid al-Gilani said.

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that it had already registered 170 applications from citizens, who are currently stuck at the border of Belarus, wishing to return to their homeland.

"The number is changing. There are still people registering their names. Until the end of today or tomorrow we will have a new list," al-Gilani, who is currently in Minsk, said.

The Iraqi consul stressed that the plane, which would take Iraqi citizens from Belarus, would take off from Minsk and first land in Erbil, and then at the airport of the Iraqi capital Baghdad.

"The trip is free for all citizens wishing to return to Iraq," al-Gilani said.

The incident with migrants on the Polish-Belarus border is an act of violence from Poland’s forces, the Belarus Border Committee said on Tuesday, adding that the investigation of the case will be launched.

Earlier in the day, the Polish security forces deployed crowd control means to stop migrants from tearing down fences and crossing over from Belarus near the Bruzgi checkpoint.

“Such use of special equipment and ammunition by the Polish security forces against unarmed people on the Belarusian side has been recorded. We regard this as nothing less than violent actions against persons who are on the territory of another country," the committee said in a comment, obtained by Sputnik.

The border committee has specified that the fence, that migrants wanted to demolish, was in fact on Poland’s territory, which made Belarusian border guards unable to get close to stopping the refugees.

"The fence that the migrants wanted to dismount is actually located in Poland, which the Belarusian border guards could not approach," the committee said.

The committee has also revealed to Sputnik its plans to launch an investigation over the incident with migrants at the border with Poland.

"The Belarusian side is initiating an investigation of this incident," the committee said.

The spokesman for Poland's special services, Stanislaw Zaryn, on Tuesday assessed the actions of the Polish security forces on the border with Belarus amid the migrant crisis as "excellent."

"Our soldiers and border guards performed the task excellently. The first wave of attacks on the border has been contained," Zaryn said on Twitter.

Belarusian doctors are treating migrants hurt in clashes with Polish border guards after a mob tried to storm the fence on Tuesday, the Belarusian Health Ministry said, adding the number of those injured was rising.

"A second ambulance was sent minutes ago to help a team of paramedics. The paramedics are giving urgent medical assistance to refugees and journalists hurt by tear gas and water cannons, however the number of the injured is rising," the ministry said on social media.

The ministry said that 21 migrants from Morocco, Turkey, Cuba, Iraq, Sri Lanka, Syria, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, and Sudan had sought medical help since border tensions escalated last Wednesday. Four people were hospitalized, including three children.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart, Alexander Lukashenko, discussed the situation at the EU-Belarus border during a phone conversation on Tuesday, the Kremlin said.

"The exchange of views on the migration crisis at the borders of Belarus with the EU countries continued - taking into account the conversation between Alexander Lukashenko and the acting Federal Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel, which took place the day before," the Kremlin said in a statement.

The Polish border service will use weapons if necessary and without hesitations, the service’s spokeswoman, Anna Michalska, said on Tuesday amid the tense situation at the border with Belarus.

"But I emphasize that we will try not to use weapons. We do not want to use them, but if necessary, we will not hesitate," Michalska said.

Russia is ready to assist with resolving the migration crisis on the border of Belarus and the EU countries, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday.

"As you know, we are doing everything to help resolve this crisis. Representatives of a number of EU countries, including Germany and France, have contacted President Putin. Yesterday we had a phone conversation with [French] President Macron. We have been asked to provide assistance and we are ready to do it," Lavrov told a briefing.

However, a direct dialogue between the European Union and the Belarusian leadership is needed to fully resolve the crisis, the minister added. As such, Lavrov highly praised the recent phone conversation between the acting German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

The actions of Polish border guards against migrants at the Belarusian border are unacceptable and violate the international humanitarian law, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday.

"Absolutely unacceptable behavior from the Polish side. I believe that [the use of] tear gas, water cannons, and shots over the heads of migrants in the direction of the state of Belarus all reflect the desire to hide their own actions. There is no way they do not understand that they violate every imaginable norms of the international humanitarian law and other agreements of the global community. Of course, they all understand this," Lavrov told reporters.

The Polish side aims to prevent publicity, which explains why journalists are not allowed to enter the Polish border area, the minister added.

Employees of the Belarusian special services have arrived at the border with Poland where migrants are making attempts to cross it on Tuesday, a Sputnik correspondent reported.

The special services are monitoring the situation but do not take any actions, according to the correspondent.

NATO allies have offered Poland assistance on the border with Belarus, and Warsaw is considering this option, Jakub Kumoch, the head of the presidency’s International Policy Bureau, said on Tuesday.

"Such a scenario is being considered. There are proposals from the allies," Kumoch told reporters.

Belarusian security forces have supplied migrants at the Belarus-Poland border with sound grenades, the Polish Defenсe Ministry said on Tuesday.

"The migrants were equipped with stun grenades by the Belarusian services and they threw at Polish soldiers and officers," the ministry tweeted.

"In the border area, Poland has deployed a group of 23,000 soldiers. To house them, 13 camps have been set up at the border. In this light, the Belarusian side has increased the presence of its intelligence forces on the border, strengthened protection of the borders and its air defense," the minister was quoted as saying by Belarusian state news agency Belta.

The Belarusian military is ready to respond to any developments on the border, he added.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Tuesday that he proposed to outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel ways to solve the migration crisis, the state-run Belta news agency reported.

According to Belta, Lukashenko and Merkel discussed the situation at the Belarus-Poland border during the phone conversation on Monday and agreed not to announce specific details yet.

Merkel took time to discuss Lukashenko’s proposal with the EU member states, Belta continued. The Belarusian president and the acting chancellor are expected to hold another phone conversation later on.

When commenting on the border situation, Lukashenko also said that the main thing is to defend the country and avoid clashes.

Yemeni authorities have no information about Yemeni refugees stuck at the Belarusian-Polish border, Interior Minister Ibrahim Ali Hidan told Sputnik.

“We have no data on how many Yemeni citizens are there. The Yemeni Foreign Ministry has not yet notified us about the presence of Yemeni citizens in Belarus. We will contact our friends in Belarus to find out about their number, or with our consulate to find out what situation they are in and whether they can return, but it is possible that some of them live outside Yemen," Hidan said.

The minister also mentioned that obtaining Belarusian tourist visas in Yemen is “impossible” but some citizens may go to other countries, including Turkey, Egypt or Jordan, and get visas via travel agencies there.

According to Hidan, the presence of Yemenis among illegal migrants in other countries is a new phenomenon and appeared after Houthis came to power and some European countries allowed Yemenis to obtain political asylum.