EU says in talks with Belarus to solve migrant crisis

EU officials are holding technical talks with Belarus to solve the migration crisis along its borders, an EU official told a daily news briefing Monday.

“We have been actually in touch with a number of Belarusian interlocutors, including the Foreign Ministry in different levels,” Peter Stano, the European Commission’s chief spokesperson on foreign policy, said when asked about Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s claims that he had reached out to the EU in vain.

Contrary to Lukashenko’s remarks, the European External Action Service (EEAS) has been in touch at various levels with their counterparts at Belarus’ Foreign Ministry, said Stano.

“We are looking into the possibility of holding technical talks with UN agencies and Belarusian counterparts at the technical and expert level in order to see how we can assist in their efforts to facilitate the repatriation of people stuck on Belarus back to safety,” he said.