Lithuania mulls taking legal measures against its neighbor Belarus for deliberately bringing migrants across its border, officials said on Wednesday (April 5). The European Union and NATO member state may also file a case with the International Court of Justice (ICJ), news agency dpa reported.

"Lithuanian authorities have enough information that the illegal migration flow that continues since 2021 could not be possible without the involvement of Belarusian regime," Justice Minister Ewelina Dobrowolska wrote on Tuesday on Twitter.

Dobrowolska further announced that her government will submit a proposal to settle the dispute through arbitration, according to dpa. If this is rejected, Lithuania will "lodge a complaint against Belarus for non-compliance" with international laws and demand compensation of at least €130 million.

The Lithuanian government reportedly agreed to a corresponding proposal by Dobrowolska's Justice Ministry on Wednesday.

Read more: Latvia, Lithuania boost border cooperation against migrant flows

Violation of UN protocol?

Specifically, Lithuania accuses Belarus of violating the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, one of three protocols supplementing the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime.

"Lithuania will claim damages. To cover the costs we have borne not only to provide for the migrants, but also in strengthening our controls and infrastructure, which was not available in the country at the time," Justice Minister Dobrowolska said.

147 countries including both Lithuania and Belarus ratified the protocol, which entered into force 20 years ago. The International Court of Justice, headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands, settles disputes between countries.

"Most importantly we will seek for a legal path to ultimately stop all migration, that exploits people, to be used as a cruel political tool," Dobrowolska concluded.

Also read: Refugees in Lithuania create art to cope with detention

Border crisis

The government's move comes after a surge in undocumented border crossings from Belarus in summer and fall of 2021, when thousands of people tried to enter Poland, Latvia and Lithuania via Belarus.

At the time, EU leaders accused Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko of deliberately orchestrating the border crossings by bringing migrants from war-torn countries to the EU's external border. The Lithuanian government, among others, responded by declaring a state of emergency at the border, stepping up border protection and building a border fence.

Moreover, it introduced a law allowing border guards to forcibly return migrants back into Belarus, an illegal practice known as pushbacks, in order to prevent migrants from entering Lithuania. NGOs, among others, criticized the decision as well as alleged human rights violations.

At least 23 migrants died in the Polish-Belarusian border region's forests and bogs in 2021 and 2022. About 40,000 people crossed into Poland from Belarus irregularly in 2021.

Read more: EU court rules Lithuania's strict asylum policy is unlawful

With dpa