By Milda Seputyte
Jul 7, 2021, 2:23 PM
Word Count: 183

The move will double the physical presence on the 670-kilometer (416-mile) frontier and assist border guards, Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said Wednesday. The government, which declared a state of emergency last week over the influx, also plans to build a wire barrier to obstruct crossings, she said.

Lithuania is seeing a flood of Iraqi and African migrants arriving from Belarus, whose already tense relations with the West soured further in May when it forced a Ryanair Holdings Plc jet to land in Minsk so it could arrest an opposition journalist.

Read more: Lithuania Declares Emergency Over Illegal Migrants From Belarus

Belarus’s president, Alexander Lukashenko, threatened in a speech that month to send drugs and undocumented migrants into the EU unchecked, with Lithuania a prime target as it’s become a temporary home for his political rivals.

As well as beefing up defenses itself, the country is awaiting additional assistance from Frontex, the EU’s border agency.