Finland closes almost all border crossings with Russia

Finland announced yesterday that it will close all border crossings with Russia except one. “There are increasing signs that the situation on the eastern border is deteriorating,” Prime Minister Petri Orbu said, after more people recently tried to cross the border without valid documents.

From midnight, three of the four remaining crossings will be closed and only the northernmost crossing, Raja Giuseppe, will be left open. That’s so far north that “it takes a real effort to get there.” The Finnish Border Guard announced earlier that organized illegal border crossings had recently moved north along the 1,340-kilometre border with Russia.

More than 600 people have been arrested since the beginning of this month. This prompted the government in Helsinki to close several crossings a few days ago. Russia is accused of directing migration. The government in Moscow rejects this and describes the closures as anti-Russian. According to Finnish information, asylum seekers come from a variety of countries, including Yemen, Afghanistan, Kenya, Morocco, Pakistan, Somalia and Syria.