Finland will close four crossings on its border with Russia, Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said on November 16, citing an increase in the number of asylum applicants arriving at the checkpoints.
"The government has today decided that Finland will close some eastern border crossing points. The eastern border for that part will close on the night between [November 16 and November 17]," Orpo told a press conference.
Orpo added that Russian border guards are contributing to the creation of a crisis at the border by allowing people to proceed without the necessary documents.
The number of asylum seekers who have arrived since September stands at 280, the Border Guard Authority said on November 16. These include people from Iraq, Yemen, Somalia, and Syria. According to Finnish media, several thousand people have tried in the past few months to enter Finland from Russia without the necessary documents.
Finnish President Sauli Niinisto told a news conference on November 15 that he believed Russia, which normally stops people without valid EU visas from crossing, had begun letting them through in response to Helsinki's plans to soon sign a defense cooperation agreement with Washington.
The four crossings to be closed are on the southern stretch of the border and are the busiest points of entry between the two countries.
Orpo said Finland would reverse course if the asylum arrivals ended, but for now Helsinki wants to send a strong message.
“We want this phenomenon to end so we can continue the border traffic like we have until now," he said.
The affected border crossings will be closed to both people and transport beginning overnight on November 17-18. The restrictions will remain in effect until February 18.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Finland's move was helping to protect the EU border.
"Russia's instrumentalisation of migrants is shameful. I fully support the measures taken by Finland," she said on X, formerly Twitter.
Finland, a member of the European Union that became the newest member in NATO earlier this year, shares a 1,340-kilometer border with Russia.
Two border crossings -- Salla on the Finnish border with the Murmansk region and Vartius (Lyuttya) on the border with the Karelia region -- will remain open to process asylum applications, Orpo said.
Those two crossings will also be open for the passage of other categories of travelers, according to Markku Hassinen, a spokesman for the Finnish border service.
The crossings at Raja-Jooseppi (Lotta in Russia) and Kuusamo (Suoperya) will also continue to operate.
Norway, which shares a border with Russia in the Arctic, is also ready to close its border if necessary, Norwegian Justice Minister Emilie Enger Mehl said.
"We're following the situation closely and we may shut the border at short notice if needed," Mehl told NTB new agency.
Finland Announces Closure Of Four Border Crossings Citing Surge Of Asylum Seekers
Cars wait to enter Finland from Russia at Finland's southernmost crossing point, Vaalimaa.