Armed, masked men threatened Latvian soldiers on the border with Belarus

The incident that occurred on the Latvian-Belarusian border was announced on Tuesday by both the Minister of Internal Affairs of Latvia, Jānis Dombrava, and the country's armed forces.

The messages indicated that a group of at least 20 illegal migrants escorted by armed and masked men tried to illegally cross the state border of Latvia.

"Unlike many previous cases, this time the provocation was particularly demonstrative and aggressive. The escort of illegal migrants, who was on the Belarusian side, was armed, made threats against soldiers, and actively encouraged and drove a group of migrants towards Latvia," we read in the entry of the Latvian Minister of Internal Affairs.

Masked men entered Latvian territory

Latvian soldiers ultimately prevented the illegal crossing of the Latvian border. However, this was not the end of the story - Jānis Dombrava informs, a few hours later, masked men entered the territory of Latvia, damaged an electrical box and stole surveillance cameras, and then returned to Belarus.

"Belarus should understand that such incidents may have more serious consequences for Belarus itself," wrote the head of the Latvian Interior Ministry.

The country's armed forces assured that they will continue to provide support to border guards on the borders with Belarus and Russia to jointly respond to the challenges of illegal migration and other hybrid threats.