Underground migrant tunnels near Belarus raise security concerns in Lithuania

Lithuania’s State Border Guard Service reports finding 12 subterranean passages near the Belarus border, each extending as far as 25 metres into Lithuanian territory, and has detained roughly 40 migrants who surfaced from them. A prosecutor’s office has opened a pre-trial investigation into roughly 20 suspects for illegal tunnel construction and possible smuggling charges, while media access to the sites remains blocked.

Border commander Rustamas Liubajevas believes the tunnels could not be built without material and logistical aid from Belarusian authorities, a claim echoed by academic Margarita Seselgyte, who describes the effort as a hybrid attack to heighten border tension. The situation is viewed as part of a wider strategy of weaponised migration, previously seen in 2021, that aims to pressure EU states and undermine support for Ukraine.

Analysts note that Lithuania, together with Poland, Latvia and EU agencies, is enhancing detection equipment and cooperation to counter the threat. The episode underscores ongoing geopolitical friction between the EU’s eastern members and Belarus, a close ally of Russia.