UKRAINE, KHARKIV OBLAST, Oct. 13 — The group called Black Rus took responsibility for the sabotage that took place on the Belarus-Latvia border in early October, the Latvian Public Service Media (LSM) said.

On the night of Oct. 5-6, armed escorts of 20 undocumented migrants from Belarus crossed the Latvian border and damaged border infrastructure.

According to the LSM, later, the group’s Telegram channel posted a video message in which a masked man with a changed voice who called himself Neman confirmed Black Rus’s involvement in the sabotage.

Neman said that three activists from the group had taken part in the operation and warned that such sabotage operations would continue in countries neighboring Belarus.

Jānis Sārts, director of the NATO Strategic Communications Center of Excellence in Riga, said that the situation at the border is directly linked to the Belarusian and Russian authorities. He called it an information operation designed to “influence emotions in people who are concerned about this situation.”

On Oct. 9, the Latvian State Security Service initiated criminal proceedings regarding Black Rus’ intentions to commit “serious crimes” against Latvia and Ukraine. The security service is not providing any more comments in the interest of the investigation.

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