Finland announced on Thursday the closure of a section of its border with Russia in response to a significant surge in migrant crossings, which it attributes to Moscow. This development underscores the escalating tensions between the two neighbors following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The decision to close four crossings on the eastern border, effective from midnight on Friday, was communicated by Prime Minister Petteri Orpo during a news conference. He emphasized that the government aimed to respond robustly to what it perceived as “organized activity” by Russia. President Sauli Niinisto had earlier suggested that the increased crossings were a form of retaliation from Moscow for Finland’s recent decision to join NATO.
“Finland, as an E.U. and NATO member, is steadfastly one of the countries condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” stated Orpo. “Therefore, we have been prepared for various actions from Russia, nastiness, and this situation does not come to us as a surprise. We have acted decisively and promptly to prevent the situation from deteriorating.”
The move comes against the backdrop of Finland’s historical and contentious relationship with Russia. The fear of being a potential target for Moscow grew after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, prompting Finland to abandon its longstanding military nonalignment and swiftly seek NATO membership—a move Russia deemed “clearly hostile.”
Even before the Ukrainian conflict, the issue of migrants had strained relations between Helsinki and Moscow. In 2015 and 2016, Finland witnessed a surge in asylum seekers crossing the Russian border, mainly from third countries. At that time, Finnish officials suspected Moscow’s involvement, with Foreign Minister Timo Soini stating, “The impression that someone is organizing and regulating things on the Russian side is probably true.”
Recent days have seen renewed concerns in Finland about an uptick in migrants at the border, prompting the Finnish Border Guard to announce the discontinuation of bicycle crossings at three checkpoints. The Interior Ministry warned of a potential closure of crossings with Russia, attributing the rise in asylum seekers to a “change” in Russia, where authorities allegedly allowed people to travel to Finland “without the proper documents.” Notably, there has been no immediate comment from Russian authorities on Finland’s border closure.
