The Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs threatens Polish hauliers to “apply all measures provided for by law in full” upon the expiry of the extension of the permit for trucks to stay in the country, granted earlier by Minsk.
The statement, issued on the evening of 17 September, also refers to “humanity”, “common sense” and “goodwill gesture”. However, it says nothing about lifting the ban on travelling through Lithuania and Latvia, a route that could have allowed the trucks to leave Belarus provided the border with Poland was closed.
1,453 Polish lorries failed to leave Belarus before Poland closed its border with Belarus. The Belarusian authorities had banned them from travelling through Lithuania or Latvia back in February 2023.
On the morning of 17 September, the Customs Committee reported that the carriers could apply for the extension of the permit to stay in the country for another 10 days.
Earlier this week, Poland announced that it would not open the border until the danger to Polish citizens in Belarus disappeared.
Carriers can be fined for violating the terms of stay. Drivers directly face a fine of up to Br1,260 (that’s almost 19 thousand hryvnia), while it can cost up to 30% of the cost of the “object of violation.