The Finnish government has made the firm decision to keep the entire border with Russia closed, according to an exclusive interview with the Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo on the Finnish Broadcasting Company – Yle. The Prime Minister emphasized that the border closure cannot be lifted as long as Russia continues to push migrants towards Finland’s borders.
He stressed that border security is a critical issue for Finland, and appropriate measures must be taken to protect it. The decision on whether to extend the border closure further will be made in the next few days, as the current closure is set to expire on January 14th.
Finland believes that the recent wave of migrants reaching its borders from Russia is due to the Russian authorities’ assistance. There have been claims that Russia is transporting migrants to the Finnish territory. In November 2023, Finland had closed all of its borders except one, Raja-Jooseppi, in an effort to halt irregular migration. However, this border crossing point was also closed on November 30th due to an influx of migrants after the closure of other border points.
Around 900 asylum seekers, mainly from Kenya, Morocco, Pakistan, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen, reached Finland from Russia in November, according to the Finnish Border Guard (RAIA). The Prime Minister had emphasized that these measures would help curb the escalating challenges posed by instrumentalised migration by Russia.
On December 14, the Vaalimaa and Niirala border crossing points were reopened, but the Prime Minister warned that they would be closed again if the situation deteriorated, which eventually happened. According to RAIA, 93 irregular migrants reached Finland through the Niirala border crossing on December 14 alone, marking the highest number of people ever reaching this border point in a single day.
The Minister of Interior of Finland, Mari Rantanen, accused Russia of continuing to use migrants to destabilize the bloc, stating that this is something that Finland will not tolerate. As of October 2023, a total of 3,568 asylum applications and 17,807 applications for temporary protection have been filed with the Finnish authorities. In 2022, the total number of asylum applications reached 5,827, while the country received another 47,302 applications for temporary protection, mainly related to the war in Ukraine.
The situation with the border closure and migration from Russia to Finland is an ongoing issue, and the Finnish government continues to monitor the situation closely to protect its borders and manage the influx of migrants.
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