The government on Wednesday decided that the border crossing points on the eastern border remain closed until further notice, said Ministry of the Interior in a press release.
The submission of applications for international protection will also continue to be centralised.
The decision on the closure of the border has been in force under the same conditions for about a year.
The new decision repealed a similar decision made by the government on 4 April 2024.
The border crossing points on the land border between Finland and Russia have been closed since 15 December 2023 by virtue of a series of government decisions.
The most recent decision entered into force on 15 April 2024.
Applications for international protection may be submitted at other border crossing points at Finland’s external borders that are still open for air and maritime traffic.
The decisions and the enactment of the ‘Border Security Act’ have achieved their intended effect, and instrumentalised migration, which began in November 2023, has ceased for now.
Instrumentalised migration is one way that Russia can put pressure on and affect the security and social stability of Finland and the EU.
Based on information available to the Finnish authorities, the risk that instrumentalised migration will resume and expand as seen previously remains likely.
If the phenomenon were to continue, it would pose a serious threat to Finland’s national security and public order.
The government will regularly assess the content and scope of the decision as the situation develops in cooperation with the Finnish Border Guard and other public authorities.
The decision will be repealed or amended if it is no longer necessary to prevent a serious threat to national security or public order.
Earlier, the government on January 11, 2024 decided that the border crossing points on the land border between Finland and Russia will remain closed until 11 February 2024.
The government on December 14, 2023 decided to close all land border with Russia.
The government on December 12 decided to resume two border crossing points at eastern border from December 14.
The government on November 28 decided to close the all the border crossing points with Russia from November 30 against the backdrop of influx of the increasing number of asylum seekers.
Earlier, Finland closed three more border crossing points- Kuusamo, Salla and Vartius- at the eastern border early November 24.
- Finland
- Russia
- Border
- Closure
Source: www.dailyfinland.fi
