Finland says to shut last border crossing to Russia, blames Moscow for migrant surge
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Asylum seekers accompanied by Finnish border police as they arrive at the Raja-Jooseppi border station in Lapland, northern Finland.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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HELSINKI – Finland’s Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said on Nov 28 that the country will shut its last border crossing to Russia, following an influx of migrants which Helsinki claims is a hybrid attack orchestrated by Moscow.
Interior Minister Mari Rantanen said the closure would come into effect overnight between Nov 29 and 30 and last until Dec 13.
The Nordic country, which shares a 1,340km border with Russia, has seen a surge in undocumented migrants seeking asylum on its border with Russia in November.
From the start of August, nearly 1,000 migrants have entered Finland without a visa through the eastern border crossing points.
“Finland is the target of a Russian hybrid operation. This is a matter of national security,” said Ms Rantanen.
Last week, Finland’s northernmost eastern border crossing, Raja-Jooseppi, became the sole entry point to Russia, following the closure of the other seven transit points by Helsinki
Asylum seekers will be limited to applying for protection at “open border crossing points for air and maritime traffic”, meaning ports and airports, according to a government statement.
“This is an organised activity, not a genuine emergency,” Mr Orpo said of the surge.
He added that the “ease with which the migrants found their way to the remote border crossing point at Raja-Jooseppi is also evidence of this”.
“It is not just the number of arrivals that is at issue, but the phenomenon itself,” he said.
Finland’s relations with its eastern neighbour soured after the invasion of Ukraine. Finland acceded to the United States-led military alliance Nato
