Poland plans to temporarily suspend the right to asylum to curb irregular migration organised by hostile neighbours Belarus and Russia, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on October 12.

Tusk stressed that he would seek recognition for this decision from the European Union, where immigration is a key political issue. He justified the move by accusing Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin of using the right to asylum in a "hybrid war" against the EU.

“We know very well how this is being used by Lukashenka, Putin, smugglers, and human traffickers. The right to asylum is being exploited, entirely contrary to its true purpose,” Tusk said during a convention of Civic Coalition, the party he leads.

“The right to asylum is being used instrumentally and has nothing to do with human rights,” he added.

The suspension could be legally justified under provisions of the EU's migration pact, which allows certain asylum and migration procedures to be suspended in extraordinary situations.

Tusk said he will present more details of his "migration strategy" later.

In recent years, tens of thousands of migrants, mostly from the Middle East and Africa, have tried to enter Poland via Belarus, with 2,500 attempting crossings last month and over 26,000 so far this year.

Poland has responded by bolstering its border infrastructure and establishing a buffer zone with restricted entry along part of its border with Belarus.

In September, Michael O’Flaherty, the Council of Europe’s Commissioner for Human Rights, warned of Belarus' destabilising actions, while also criticising Poland’s illegal policy of pushing back migrants without assessing asylum claims.

Tusk's announcement sparked renewed criticism from NGOs. “I never saw Donald Tusk as a champion of human rights, but this is a new low,” said Malgorzata Szuleka of the Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights in an interview with the BBC.

Human rights organisations argue that the right to seek asylum, enshrined in the Polish Constitution, is a fundamental human right that cannot be suspended. International asylum laws, including the Geneva Convention, also bind Poland.

Tusk’s proposal took his coalition partners by surprise. “I see Tusk’s words as part of an election campaign,” said Anna Maria Zukowska, an MP for the Left, speaking to Polsat News.

Poland is eight months away from a presidential election, which will see a change in leadership as President Andrzej Duda steps down after completing his second and final term.

The election is crucial for Tusk’s government, as the coalition lacks the votes to override a presidential veto. Duda, an ally of the opposition Law and Justice (PiS) party, has frequently used his veto powers to block legislation. He has also referred laws to the Constitutional Tribunal for review, a court Tusk’s coalition considers illegitimate but cannot stop Duda from using.

A victory by a Tusk-aligned presidential candidate would remove a major obstacle to his government’s agenda. However, another PiS president could derail the coalition, which is already divided on several issues.

With Poland’s political landscape, a runoff vote in the presidential election is almost certain. The coalition’s candidate will likely face a PiS contender and will need support from the far-right electorate to win. The far-right Konfederacja party has long opposed immigration, pushing both PiS and the Civic Coalition further to the right for fear of losing votes.