Lithuania is following the precedent set by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), which previously allowed exceptions for Spain, Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė said on Thursday.
She was commenting on reports that the European Commission will likely demand that Poland, Latvia and Lithuania amend their laws that allow pushing migrants back into Belarus.
Read more: EU mulls challenging pushback laws in Lithuania and Poland
"This is not Brussels' position or someone else's opposition. There is a precedent of the European Court of Human Rights in the case of Spain and Morocco, where the procedures, the precedent, and the circumstances in which this tactic can be applied are clearly stated," Šimonytė told reporters.
"And my understanding is that what is happening at the eastern border of the Republic of Lithuania and the Republic of Poland is absolutely what the court's judgement says," she added.
The Brussels-based news website EUobserver reported on Wednesday that the Commission would likely demand that the three countries amend their laws.
"We are still in assessment, but I think that we will ask for amendments in some of the legislations," it quoted Johansson as saying.
Read more: Migration crisis in Baltics and Poland
The commissioner did not say when the Commission might demand the respective changes or on which specific points.
However, her comments came amid broader concerns over the legality of turning migrants and prospective asylum seekers back to Belarus.
In early August, Lithuanian border guards started redirecting migrants caught attempting to cross the border irregularly to official border crossing points. Migrants can also apply for asylum at Vilnius' embassy in Minsk.
Lithuanian authorities say the people can apply for asylum at official border crossing points and at the country’s embassy in Minsk. However, NGOs and human rights activists say Belarusian officials prevent the migrants from reaching the border checkpoints.
Newsletter
Every Friday morning.
