FGermany is closing half of its border crossings with Russia. The Finnish government announced this on Thursday. Accordingly, the four border crossings Niirala, Imatra, Nuijamaa and Vaalimaa in the southeast of the country will be closed from this Saturday.
Finland’s Prime Minister Petteri Orpo and Interior Minister Mari Rantanen justified the measure, which is initially limited to three months, by saying that Russia is increasingly allowing migrants to cross the common border without the necessary documents. “The aim of creating such a situation is to divide and fragment society,” Orpo said. Rantanen added that information about the border closures was being disseminated in several languages via social media.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Platform X on Thursday evening that she supported Finland’s move. “Russia’s instrumentalization of migrants is shameful,” she wrote. “I thank the Finnish border guards for protecting our European borders.” The European Border Guard Agency, Frontex, has expressed its willingness to help Finland secure the more than 1,300 kilometer long border.
Border guards see risk of escalation
Around 3,000 people use Finland’s southeastern border crossings every day. According to the Finnish Border Guard, around 280 asylum seekers have arrived there without valid documents since September. According to Rantanen, the migrants appeared to be staying in Russia legally.
The deputy head of the border guard, Markku Hassinen, said there was “clearly a risk of escalation.” Shortly before the announced closure of the border crossings, the Finnish border guard registered almost 100 asylum seekers on Friday. By 6 p.m. local time, 96 people had reported, the border guard in southeastern Finland said on Platform X. The day before there were 26 asylum seekers.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has criticized the border closures. They are “an expression of the new dividing lines in Europe, which do not solve any questions, but – on the contrary – only create new problematic questions,” said Russian Foreign Office spokeswoman Maria Zakharova to the daily newspaper “Izvestia” on Thursday evening.
According to media reports, Estonia is now expecting more migrants at its border crossings with Russia. Tallinn is preparing to close all crossings.
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