“Ukrainian border guards prevented foreigners from the Middle East from attempting to enter Ukraine from Belarus,” wrote a statement published Thursday evening.
It added that these people tried to cross the border at the border crossing in the Chernihiv Oblast on Thursday on a tour bus from Minsk.
During an additional inspection, it was found that foreigners, including four teenagers, had traveled to Minsk a few weeks earlier and immediately flew to the Grodno region.
Foreigners told the guards that they were going to Ukraine for tourism. The foreigners added that after visiting the monuments in western Belarus, they decided to go to Ukraine as well. They emphasized that they were more interested in the Lviv region. From Lviv – they said – they planned to return home.
“However, such a tourist route did not convince the officers and was not considered a basis for confirming the purpose of their trip,” the police wrote. It was decided not to allow the group to pass and return it to Belarus, because – as indicated – the persons concerned have no reasons to enter Ukraine. The purpose of their access was defined as ‘dummy’.
Police found that most of these people had passports issued during a similar period – in September-October this year.
The press release noted that border protection with Belarus is being strengthened. Efforts are underway to prevent “the use of official entry channels by potential illegal immigrants”.
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