Delfina ERTANOWSKA^

Abstract. The article presents the migration crisis on the Belarusian-Polish-Lithuanian-Latvian border. The genesis and factors are discussed on the basis of media information. An analysis of the media and propaganda tools used in the public media resources of Poland and Belarus was carried out, on the example of the public media of both countries. The article was enriched with the opinion of the Belarusian analyst Vadim Mojeiko, PhD.

Keywords: media propaganda, Polish-Belarusian media sphere, migration crisis, hybrid war, Russian threat

The European Union is struggling with another migration crisis; however, both the genesis of the current migration wave and the direction from which immi-grants come are the complete opposite of the more or less spontaneous migrations of the Muslim population from countries torn by wars, internal conflicts, in search of security or a better life.

On May 23, 2021, the inconspicuous flight of a Ryanair from Athens to Vilnius changed the current geopolitical situation on NATO’s eastern flank. The hijacking and grounding of the plane registered in Poland by the Lukashenko’s regime began a new phase of the hybrid war in Central and Eastern Europe. Roman Protasevich, one of the founders of the NEXTA channel on the Telegram platform, was on board. The arrest of the Belarusian oppositionist influencer and the unprecedented attack on a civilian plane triggered the immediate response from the EU and neighboring countries: sanctions, ban on flights over the territory of Belarus and ban on Belavia Airlines flights to UE and Ukraine, which enraged Alexander Lukashenko. In response, there were harsh words, threats, and attempts to intimidate both the entire EU and neighboring countries as ”responsible for the whole situation”.

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