Baltic States – CIS, Belarus, Latvia

The applications were received in August and September.

Petersone declined to say what reasons the Belarusian citizens mentioned in their asylum applications. She also did not say what the asylum seekers were by profession, nor whether they had suffered in the repressions in Belarus.

In the meantime, Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics (New Unity) said on Twitter that the government today allocated EUR 50,000 for medical treatment of Belarusians beaten by the regime. Six persons have been treated in Latvia so far.

Latvia has issued 41 visa for politically persecuted individuals, said Rinkevics. The minister said already on August 17 that Latvia was ready to take in asylum seekers from Belarus. This though will be done in accordance with all the relevant Covid-19 precautionary measures and epidemiological safety requirements, he added.

According to the Asylum Law, a person submit an application regarding granting of refugee or alternative status in person to the Border Guard at a border crossing point or in a unit of the Border Guard, if the person already is in Latvia.