Sharjah 24 – AFP: Belarus's strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko told migrants on the border with Poland Friday that he would not try to stop them from reaching the European Union, urging Germany to take them in.
In footage released by state media, Lukashenko was shown visiting a centre near the Polish border hosting hundreds of migrants -- mainly Kurds from Iraq -- who travelled to Belarus in the hopes of reaching Europe.
Western governments accuse Lukashenko of luring the migrants to his country to spark a border crisis with the EU in revenge for sanctions, which he denies.
Lukashenko was shown walking among and talking to the migrants in the centre, then addressing them outside from a podium in a campaign-style speech.
Dressed in winter coats as they stood in the cold, the migrants appeared confused, though there were scatterings of applause.
Lukashenko, who has accused the EU of failing to meet humanitarian standards by refusing the migrants entry, told them his government would do nothing to prevent them from reaching Europe.
"If anybody wants to go West -- that is your right. We will not try to catch you, beat you, and hold you behind barbed wire," Lukashenko said.
"We will work with you to achieve your dream."
With many of the migrants hoping to reach Germany, Lukashenko said he was asking the German people to welcome them.
"Please take these people in. This number is not very big. They want to live in Germany -- 2,000 people is not a big problem for Germany," he said.
In recent months thousands of migrants from the Middle East have travelled to Belarus in the hopes of getting across the border into EU member Poland.
The crisis escalated earlier this month when several hundred tried to rush the border but were pushed back by Polish security forces.
Some 2,000, including many women and children, set up a makeshift camp on the border in freezing conditions.
The camp was cleared last week by border guards and the migrants moved to a nearby logistics centre.
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