Lithuania filed a case against Belarus at the International Court of Justice accusing it of orchestrating a migrant crisis that endangered lives and violated international law.

The case centers on alleged violations by Belarus of the United Nations Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea, and Air, the ICJ said in a statement Monday.

Vilnius is accusing Belarus of having breached its international obligations by enabling migrant smuggling, failing to secure its borders, neglecting cooperation with enforcement authorities and disregarding the rights of migrants.

These actions, Lithuania argues, have seriously undermined its sovereignty, security and public order, while exposing vulnerable individuals to significant harm.

“The Belarusian regime must be held legally accountable for orchestrating the wave of illegal migration and the resulting human rights violations,” Lithuanian Justice Minister Rimantas Mockus said in a statement.

“We are taking this case to the International Court of Justice to send a clear message: no state can use vulnerable people as political pawns without facing consequences under international law,” he added.

Since 2021, tensions between Lithuania and Belarus have escalated after thousands of people — mainly from the Middle East and Africa — crossed into Lithuania, Poland and Latvia from Belarus.

In December 2021, the EU adopted emergency measures allowing member countries bordering Belarus and Russia to temporarily suspend asylum rights in light of Minsk and Moscow’s “hybrid war” tactics.

 In 2024, the number of people entering the EU at the Belarusian border rose by 66 percent compared with 2023, according to the European Commission.