Finland’s five remaining checkpoints on the 1,300-kilometre frontier with Russia could shut as early as Wednesday night, according to a leaked cabinet plan reported by the newspaper Iltalehti and picked up by international wires. Prime Minister Petteri Orpo’s government already closed four busy crossings in the south on 18 November after more than 600 undocumented third-country nationals arrived in the space of three days.
Officials say the new wave of arrivals—predominantly Syrians, Yemenis and Somalis who had been residing in Russia—amounts to “instrumentalised migration.” Interior Minister Mari Rantanen told Yle radio that Moscow has allowed migrants to reach the border without valid EU visas “to put pressure on Finland for joining NATO.”
![Finnish Government Poised to Seal Entire Eastern Border Amid Surge in Irregular Crossings]()
Under the emergency proposal, the Vartius, Salla, Kuusamo and Raja-Jooseppi posts would be closed to all traffic at 00:00 on 26 November for an initial two-week period, during which asylum claims would be accepted only at Helsinki Airport or designated seaports. The Finnish Border Guard has begun erecting movable barbed-wire fences and redeploying 400 conscripts to reinforce police units in Lapland.
The move, while popular domestically—67 percent support full closure according to a Taloustutkimus poll—raises legal questions. The UNHCR reminded Helsinki that international protection must remain accessible, and the Finnish Refugee Council warned of “serious reputational damage” if asylum seekers are left in sub-zero conditions in the no-man’s-land. The business community is also uneasy: forestry firms that truck timber via Salla face detours of up to 500 kilometres through Norway, adding roughly €900 per load in fuel and driver costs.
Neighbouring Sweden and the Baltic states have offered logistical support, while the European Commission said it is “closely monitoring” whether the closures comply with the Schengen Borders Code. A final decision is expected at Monday’s extraordinary cabinet meeting. Companies with supply chains running through the eastern frontier are drawing up contingency plans and advising staff to reroute cargo through seaports until clarity emerges.
Officials say the new wave of arrivals—predominantly Syrians, Yemenis and Somalis who had been residing in Russia—amounts to “instrumentalised migration.” Interior Minister Mari Rantanen told Yle radio that Moscow has allowed migrants to reach the border without valid EU visas “to put pressure on Finland for joining NATO.”
Under the emergency proposal, the Vartius, Salla, Kuusamo and Raja-Jooseppi posts would be closed to all traffic at 00:00 on 26 November for an initial two-week period, during which asylum claims would be accepted only at Helsinki Airport or designated seaports. The Finnish Border Guard has begun erecting movable barbed-wire fences and redeploying 400 conscripts to reinforce police units in Lapland.
The move, while popular domestically—67 percent support full closure according to a Taloustutkimus poll—raises legal questions. The UNHCR reminded Helsinki that international protection must remain accessible, and the Finnish Refugee Council warned of “serious reputational damage” if asylum seekers are left in sub-zero conditions in the no-man’s-land. The business community is also uneasy: forestry firms that truck timber via Salla face detours of up to 500 kilometres through Norway, adding roughly €900 per load in fuel and driver costs.
Neighbouring Sweden and the Baltic states have offered logistical support, while the European Commission said it is “closely monitoring” whether the closures comply with the Schengen Borders Code. A final decision is expected at Monday’s extraordinary cabinet meeting. Companies with supply chains running through the eastern frontier are drawing up contingency plans and advising staff to reroute cargo through seaports until clarity emerges.
