Lithuania to deploy border guards to Latvia over irregular migration

Lithuania will deploy border guards to Latvia next month to help secure the Latvian-Belarusian border as neighboring Latvia faces growing migration pressure from Belarus, the State Border Guard Service (VSAT) said on Tuesday.

A team of nine Lithuanian officers will be stationed along the border for two weeks in July, carrying out surveillance, helping prevent irregular border crossings and performing other security duties in high-risk areas, Lrt news reported.

The deployment will include personnel from Lithuania's Pagegiai Border District and Coast Guard Border District, as well as two dog handlers accompanied by service dogs.

VSAT said Latvia is experiencing significant pressure from irregular migration, with secondary migration flows through the country increasing more than fourfold this year.

Lithuanian border guards have previously assisted Latvia with similar operations between 2023 and 2025.

According to the service, around 6,600 migrants have been detained, pushed back to Belarus or prevented from crossing the Latvian border this year.

In Lithuania, authorities have recorded more than 1,600 attempts to cross the Belarusian border irregularly so far this year, compared with 1,002 during the same period last year.

Since the migration crisis began in 2021, Lithuanian border guards have prevented more than 25,000 people from entering the country illegally.