Through the Baltic back door
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On the EU's eastern border the Baltic States are grappling with an unexpected side-effect of joining the Schengen visa-free club - a huge influx of illegal immigrants headed for other member countries. NGOs warn that recession-struck Latvia, in particular, risks becoming a hub for human trafficking.
The Baltic States joined the Schengen agreement, which guarantees free travel throughout most of the European Union, in 2007. Since then the number of illegal immigrants has risen sharply.
Latvian border police reported a three-fold increase in the number of people caught trying to enter the country with false documents last year and detained almost 600 illegal immigrants.
But this may be just the tip of the iceberg. Last month, the police in neighbouring Russia warned that an estimated 20,000 potential immigrants are waiting to cross over the Latvian and Estonian borders.
The immigrants are coming via Russia from as far away as Afghanistan and Syria. Yet Latvia is by no means their final destination. Latvian State Border Guard officials confirm that most of those they detained were ultimately headed for other European countries, particularly the Scandinavian nations and the United Kingdom.
In 2009 Latvia also reported a rise in the number of illegal immigrants arriving in groups, an indication that human traffickers are now targeting the country. NGOs, such as the International Red Cross, warn that Latvia has no systems in place to provide for illegal immigrants and asylum seekers, and with the country currently struggling with a major economic crisis, they express little hope that things will improve soon.
