Finland closes its border with Russia again

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Finland has once again decided to close all border crossings with Russia. This was stated by Interior Minister Marie Rantanen during a press conference.

Two border crossings were opened in Valima and Nirala on Wednesday while others remained closed. Before its opening, the Finnish government warned that it could be closed again if Russian provocations continued, which the authorities now believe they have done.

– I stress the necessity of completely closing the eastern border again in order to control the border situation, Rantanen said during the press conference.

The border closes on Friday at 8pm and remains closed until January 14. Air and water traffic across the eastern border has also been suspended.

At the end of November, the government decided to close the entire eastern border to end the wave of asylum seekers coming from Russia. Several hundred asylum seekers have been arriving at the crossings for a few weeks, many of them on bicycles.

The Finnish authorities believed that the Russian regime was behind this, trying to overcome NATO’s external borders, and decided, under the pretext of threats to the country’s security, to close the border posts until at least December 13.