On Wednesday afternoon, the message came from Finland’s Prime Minister Petteru Orpo: several of their border crossings to Russia will be closed. The crossings will be closed until 18 February 2024. This applies to Vaalimaa, Nuijamaa, Imatra and Niirala, reports Reuters. They are closed to limit the number of asylum seekers entering the country from Russia. As a result, asylum applications from persons in Russia are only received via two northern border crossings: Salla and Vartius. At other border crossing points that remain open, it is not possible to apply for asylum, writes the newspaper Helsingin Sanomat. The Nujiamaa crossing is one of those that will be closed on Wednesday. Photo: Vesa Moilanen Lehtikuva / NTB – We will end the restrictions if illegal immigration stops, says Interior Minister Mari Rantanen according to Reuters. Spokesperson from the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, said on Wednesday that Russia “is not obliged” to help Finland “filter migrants”. This was after the Finnish authorities announced that there would be measures in response to the development. – We are deeply dissatisfied that the Finnish authorities have chosen to deliberately move away from what was supposed to be a good relationship, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on the same day, according to the Moscow Times. Increase in undocumented migrants More and more asylum seekers are coming from Russia to Finland, and many without valid documentation, according to the Finnish border management authority. Late on Wednesday evening there were 75 asylum seekers at the south-eastern border crossing Lappeenranta. On Tuesday it was 55, and on Monday 39, they say. This is ten more per day than is usual, and most of them did not have the documentation they needed to cross, a border guard told news. He has asked not to be quoted by name. The majority of the asylum seekers who have entered Finland via Russia this week come from Syria, Iraq and Yemen, according to the border guard that news has spoken to. Photo: LEHTIKUVA / Reuters – Usually the number of asylum seekers on this route on the eastern border between Finland and Russia is very, very low. We talk about a few individuals now and then. – There is a clear increase, not only in the number but also the type of people who come, he says, and clarifies that it is about both men and women from countries in Africa and the Middle East. On Wednesday, it is expected that the Finnish government will come up with measures in response to the increase in border crossings. The border station in Lappeenranta early morning 16 November. Raja says that the situation is still under control. Photo: Vesa Moilanen Lehtikuva / NTB These may involve further restrictions on who is allowed to cross into the country from Russia. – It is clearly an illegal immigration phenomenon. The reason behind it is that the Russian border authorities behave differently, and have made this possible, says the Raja border guard. – But compared to immigration figures from Europe, they are still quite low. The situation is under control. “Revenge” for agreement with the USA Finnish President Sauli Niinistö said on Wednesday that the increase in border crossings is “revenge” on the part of Russia, The Guardian reports. The Finnish president Sauli Niinistö. Photo: INA FASSBENDER / AFP Niinistö promised to take a “very clear step” against what the government calls an “international crime” against Finland. This may mean closing several border stations, the AP news agency reported on Tuesday, citing both Niinistö and Rantanen. Finnish and Russian border authorities have for years cooperated on each side to stop people without visas or passports from trying to cross into the neighboring country. The Russian foreign minister says the proposal to close the Finnish border with Russia is as “absurd” as the border fence. Photo: JUSSI NUKARI / AFP Rantanen and Prime Minister Orpo say Finland is ready for further decisions if the current ones are not enough. According to the Border Guard Act in Finland, the government can close border crossings or limit the number of people who cross them if necessary, according to Helsingen Sanomat. This may be to combat a serious threat to public order or national security. Transitional points cannot be closed longer than is absolutely necessary.
ttn-69
Finland closes several border crossings to Russia – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
