Colonel Jaroslaw Zukovic, the press secretary of the Polish Border Guard, reported that on Saturday, September 11, the Polish border guards at the border between Poland from Belarus near Brest denied entry to about 100 Chechens.
Press secretary of the Nadbuze Division (the Polish-Belarussian border) of the Polish Border Guard Lieutenant Colonel Andrzej Wojcik said that "the recent story with the Chechens is nothing extraordinary." He said that a foreigner could be denied access to Poland if he/she lacks all appropriate documents (Russian citizens require a Polish visa), apparently lacks money to cover his/her expenses in Poland, or the goals of his/her trip appear to be inconsistent with what is specified in the visa.
"The Polish border guards acted in compliance with the current national legislation," Wojcik said, "the nationality of the foreigners did not count: they just produced Russian passports and failed to comply with one of conditions of entry to Poland."
Wojcik also said that in his area of responsibility about 1,400 foreigners have applied for asylum this year.
"Most applications came from Russian citizens of Chechen descent," he emphasized.
Press secretary of the Polish Foreign Ministry Boguslaw Majewski told RIA Novosti that the latest denial should not affect relations between Russia and Poland.
Previously the Russian consulate general in Brest had confirmed that 125 Chechens were detained on the border between Belarus and Poland on Saturday. Russian diplomats had told RIA Novosti over the telephone that the Chechens were "accommodated in hotels, the situation is calm and under control."
However, the consulate refused to give further comment.
